


Boot Camp

by orphan_account



Category: Dragon Ball Z
Genre: Established Relationship, Feels, M/M, Personal Growth, Relationship Growth, references to past Major Character Death (canon), strictness, training and endurance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-30
Updated: 2014-01-02
Packaged: 2018-01-03 00:41:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 71,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1063616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gohan and Mirai haven't trained in years when an unexpected event throws light on their lack of readiness.  They realize quickly that accountability has become a big problem for them (I mean, just look at the hunk working out next to him, how would you stay focused?...).  They should probably have both their middle names changed to "distraction".  Not ones to just let it go though, they begin to look into what kind of training methods would work best for their particular issue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Earth's Defenses

**Author's Note:**

> Author’ Notes: This Gohan x Mirai fic is set in Lord Truhan’s “Sergeant” universe.  
> ............  
> Roane is pronounced "ROW-an". He is not an additional 'love interest'. Also, he is loosely based on Baki the Grappler, but I myself have never seen that series, so this is not really a crossover. That's just some help I was given on starting points for his character, maybe people might think that's interesting?...

When someone from the future looks you in the eye and says “Those things are going to kill you,” you tend to take it a little more seriously than you had before. Bulma quit smoking more than a decade ago, but the urge still hit her when she was especially stressed. She peeled open a fresh stick of gum (the old one had lost it's flavor) and began chewing furiously. She had dodged lung cancer, but now it would seem that those boys were going to be the death of her.  
“He's young, there's still a chance he might grow out of it, albeit a quickly diminishing one...” Mirai offered from the plush, oversized conference chair opposite her. His office read “President” on the door, but nothing would ever make her less than the essence of Capsule Corp itself. She rubbed her temples as she inhaled the minty tingle left on her tongue.  
“I've already started damage control, but really, in such a public place? What the hell were they thinking? No, don't even say it – they weren't, I know...” Bulma trailed off with a sigh.  
“Well, if worst comes to worst, you could always cut him off, or tell Dad” Mirai chuckled. Bulma raised an eyebrow to that.  
“I want him to stop acting like a spoiled co-ed, not die” she said. Mirai laughed. For all his greater maturity and even-tempered nature, she could still see that streak in him occasionally, the one that was a mile wide in his younger self. He never crossed the lines that Trunks did, but Mirai was just as unapologetic about who he was. Like, for instance, when Gohan's marriage had mysteriously dissolved within the year of his coming back from the future... Bulma brushed all that aside though, it was neither here nor now... and Videl had always been kind of a bitch anyway.  
“Cutting him off though, that may be my only option at this point. I am literally, as we speak, going gray; things cannot continue like this” she frowned at the potted plant in the corner, her mind wandering.  
“Well, whatever you decide to do, you know we'll all support you” Mirai informed her.  
“Yes, you will” she said with certainty as she stood, “I'll leave you to it then” she nodded at the stack of paperwork she had interrupted.  
“Thaaaanks” Mirai said sarcastically, smiling. Bulma grinned, she always saw the brighter side of life when she was teasing someone else.  
“Things could be worse I guess, I could be stuck inside some office, doing a mountain of paperwork while the beautiful day goes to waste outside.”  
“Oh, don't feel too bad for me, the date I have waiting for me is a lot hotter than the one waiting for you” he said with a practiced wink.  
Damn that kid. Bulma rolled her eyes and walked out of the room without another word – you couldn't even get drunk at one Christmas party without it coming back to haunt you for the rest of your life...

After his mother had left, Mirai attacked the mound in front of him with renewed vigor, pushing Trunks' and Gotens' pending legal troubles out of his head. These reports were all that stood between him and dinner with Gohan this evening, and the sooner he finished, the sooner he would have that magnificent smile directed at him.

Gohan had finally finished his work on the new space transmission modules, designed to let people communicate from opposite ends of the galaxy. If all went smoothly, they would develop an intergalactic and universal version as well. He was the only person that the higher-ups (Bulma) trusted with a project of this importance, so he had a whole lab to himself, as well as flexible hours that had come in handy on several occasions. Today he and Mirai would be celebrating the success of this most recent endeavor; messages were now coming and going loud and clear from the test planet on the farthest edge of the quadrant from them.  
He had been cooking all afternoon, a skill he had picked up from his mother unbeknownst to either of them. Years ago, when he and Mirai had first moved in together and were starving, he discovered he remembered most of his favorite childhood dishes pretty well, and then it had begun. The scientific portion of cooking was easy for him to grasp, and the artistic flair it could take on intrigued him. But with so little free time, it became the treat for them, instead of eating out. Gohan's cell phone rang.  
“Hey, I'm just leaving the office, 15 minute warning” Mirai said as he pushed the button for the elevator. Instead of taking it down to the lobby, he rode it up to the roof. Capsule Corp was one of the few buildings in town with rooftop elevator access. Since it was already dark, he would just fly home to save time.  
“Ok, see you in a few then” Gohan replied. It was not that the flame had died, or diminished in any way over the years. Mirai and Gohan had just never felt the need to say “I love you” a dozen times a day, desiring to preserve the intimacy of the phrase instead.  
As soon as Mirai touched down on the balcony, the magnificent smile he had been missing lit up for him. Glances, stares, and lingering touches were exchanged throughout the entire meal, along with laughter and good company. They left the dishes in the sink. Gohan came up behind him and swept the curtain of Mirai's hair over his shoulder so he could kiss the back of his neck.  
“You could use a good soak to loosen up these muscles – your shoulders are so tense” he said while burying his nose in his nape. A self-confident grin appeared on Mirai's face.  
“Sure, that sounds good, put on some Schubert for me while I run the tub?” he requested innocently.  
“Of course” Gohan ran his hands down Mirai's sides possessively as he stepped back to comply.  
The old fashioned claw-foot tub had to be installed separately at Mirai's request, but it was worth the hassle for the feeling of luxury it brought. He adjusted the water and poured in a little scented foaming bath wash. For Gohan's sake he wouldn't call it bubble bath, but that's really what it was, even if it was an exotic imported brand. He removed his clothing and caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. Even though he hadn't trained in years, being half Saiyan gave him an amazing physique despite his desk job. Gohan came in a moment later, leaving the door cracked so the music could waft through. He was carrying a bottle of wine and two glasses.  
“Ahem” Mirai nodded to the glass Gohan was filling with wine; it was about to overflow as Gohan's attention was focused on his naked form instead of the drink he was pouring. Gohan grinned and laughed it off, sipping the contents to keep it from spilling before passing it to Mirai. Mirai sipped it as well while he watched Gohan strip. As Gohan poured himself a glass as well, Mirai settled slowly into the hot water, letting it melt away all the stress of the day. Gohan joined him, leaving his glass on the edge of the counter while he washed. There was hardly enough room for this, but that was kind of the point. Washing turned to exploring after glass of wine number two, with Gohan checking Mirai over thoroughly to make sure no spots had been missed.  
“I love you” Gohan whispered in his ear.  
“I love you too” Mirai replied, kissing the side of his neck and scooting down just enough so his head could rest against the edge of the tub. Gohan sucked and bit tenderly on his neck while he slid a finger into him beneath the water. Mirai moaned loudly at his expert ministrations. Gohan increased the intensity, biting hard enough to draw blood as he pushed a second finger into him. Mirai never needed much preparing, liking to walk the edge of pleasure and pain, and Gohan indulged him. He braced both his hands on the edge of the tub, licking up Mirai's neck and across the line of his jaw, to end in a playful nip at his lower lip as he drew back from him.  
“Gohan, please...” Mirai's eyes flew open, drowning in need though his head was above water. He lifted his legs as he spoke, hooking his knees over the edges of the tub; he knew Gohan loved to see him like this.  
“Please” he said again seductively, running his hands over that sculpted chest, leaving fresh rivulets of water and suds to flow down it. Finally, finally, Gohan began to push inside of him, watching him sigh in satisfaction when he was filled completely. Mirai began to rock his hips against him, using his hold on the edges of the tub for leverage. The movement of the water lapping at his legs accented his motions perfectly, and Gohan was caught up just watching his wanton lover pleasure himself against him for a moment.  
“Gohan...” Mirai moaned again, grabbing his hips and leaning up to capture a kiss, breaking the spell. Gohan pushed him back down and began the highlight of the evening, making his partner call out his name in unbridled ecstasy.  
“Gohan! Gods, Yes!” Mirai shouted loudly as he was pushed back against the porcelain with the force of Gohan's thrusts. Sliding in and out of his love was the best feeling on Earth; no meditation, battle lust, or even power up could compare to that tight heat. Pleasure pulsed through him, anchored to the man below.  
“Aaaaah, Go-han, please...please, harder!” Mirai openly begged him. The waves of water they made began sloshing out of the tub with the change in pace. Gohan took one hand off the edge, and used it to begin stroking Mirai's swollen manhood, drawing an elongated gasp from him. Mirai was always more vocal when he'd had a glass or two of wine; God how he loved this man. After a few minutes of this attention, Mirai couldn't hold it back anymore. Gohan rammed into his prostate that one last time he needed, and Mirai came in his hand.  
“Gohan! ... Gohan!” he screamed as his flesh convulsed and a murky swirl tainted the water between them.  
Damn, that was too much... Yet just enough, and so right, Gohan thought just before he came, emptying himself deeply into that constricting heat.  
After the spasms had all settled, Gohan picked Mirai up out of the water, drying him off briefly before carrying him to bed.  
“Whoa stud, planning round two already?” Mirai joked.  
“Maybe... I had round one planned long before you got here” he said with a wink.  
“Yeah, yeah, don't forget the wine” Mirai responded, and Gohan laughed. He had learned to read Mirai better than anyone else, even Bulma, and he was definitely pleased at the moment. He settled into the plush bed and yawned.  
“Hey, now none of that” Gohan teased him.  
“You're the one who wore me out, so you'll just have to think of a way to keep me awake if you want more” Mirai laughed.  
“I can think of a few things...” Gohan said as he shut the bedroom door.

Mirai hadn't gotten so little sleep on a Thursday night in quite a while. Oh well, there were always large doses of caffeine to make up for it in the morning...

The phone rang sharply, dragging Mirai and Gohan out of their slumber at 4 am. They had to be up in an hour and a half anyway, but since their 'activities' had kept them up til 2, it was not a welcome interruption.  
“H'lo?” Gohan mumbled after it began it's second round of incessant ringing.  
“I'm getting too old for this” was the shocking reply on the other end, “get your asses down here now, I'm not in the mood to play messenger girl” Bulma hung up on him.  
“Crap, something's going on – we need to get down to your Mom's right away” Gohan said as he shook the body next to him.  
“Uh-uh” was the response he got as Mirai buried his head deeper in his pillow. Gohan smacked him on the ass, hard. Mirai jolted up, glaring at him.  
“What the hell was that for?!?”  
“Get. Up.” Gohan said firmly – but the effect was slightly ruined by his own yawn.  
“Damn, you were serious? What the fuck is going on?” Mirai grumbled as he tossed the covers off.  
“She didn't say, but it's got to be serious if she wants us both over there in the middle of the night.”  
“If it's something those brats have done again, Mom won't have to worry about cutting him off, I'll kill them myself” Mirai vented. He was not a morning person. Or should he say middle of the night person. Gohan dressed relatively quietly, smiling now and then at Mirai's frustrations.  
“Do you think I have time to make coffee?” Mirai queried.  
“I think she'll have some there, better to not keep her waiting – she sounded pissed” Gohan informed him.

When they touched down at Capsule Corp, all the outdoor floodlights were on, and there was a spaceship rising out of the lawn. A crew of people were running back and forth, checking on readings, tightening bolts, and loading supplies. Their fathers were standing side by side at the edge of the platform, dressed in full-on battle gear. Neither of them looked the least bit disconcerted to have been awakened before the crack of dawn.  
“Hey, what's going on?” Gohan called out as they walked over, “Is there trouble?” Goku turned to them, his face practically beaming as he told them that the planet they had allied with to test out the new communication modules was under attack.  
“That's horrible!” Gohan exclaimed, “Where do we suit up?”  
Vegeta snorted.  
“Oh please, the last thing we need is you two idiots getting in the way” he sneered. Mirai envied how normal his Dad sounded without sleep or caffeine.  
“What are you trying to say?” Gohan asked him indignantly, “Why did you call us out here if you thought you could handle it by yourselves?” He could see Mirai starting to get pissed, he was standing with his arms crossed just like a certain someone else.  
“The Woman called you, not me” Vegeta turned his back to him.  
“Actually, I asked her to get you guys” Goku explained, “You see, the people we're going to help are really weak, I mean, so much so that I can't even get a bead on them with Instant Transmission... So we have to take a space ship over there. If something happens back here, like the Earth gets attacked while we're gone, we can always IT back, but I need you to be able to signal us no matter how far away we are. Soooo... we need you to put together another of those transmitter thingies for the ship within the next hour or so.”  
“What?” Gohan protested.  
“Now son, I'm sure you can do it, you're the smartest person in our whole family” Goku stated.  
“That's not saying a lot, Kakarot” Vegeta interjected. Goku stuck his tongue out at him.  
“That's not what I meant Dad, we can handle things if the Earth were to be threatened, you don't need to be worried about that.”  
“I know son, I just meant if it were something really bad, you know...” Goku kind of trailed off.  
“What Kakarot is trying to say is that you've both become so lazy with your training, or complete lack thereof, that Bra could probably take either of you” Vegeta growled.  
“Hey, she's not even a Super Saiyan” Mirai scowled, his pride stinging a bit.  
“Well, maybe if you two weren't so busy screwing around, you could be trusted with it, but as it stands right now, the Earth is practically unguarded with Kakarot and I gone. Now get to work on that transmitter boy, or I'll really give you something to whine about” Vegeta laid into him.  
“Yeesh Vegeta, are you going to be like this the whole trip?” Goku asked as he rolled his eyes.  
Vegeta just scowled at him and then walked away.  
“The girls are in the house, I think Bulma's already gathered up all the parts you'll need – thanks guys!” Goku said, walking away nonchalantly to save one of the technicians from Vegeta's rage.  
Gohan sighed and headed for the kitchen, patting Mirai on the back and pulling him with him.  
“Can you believe the nerve of that guy?” Mirai said under his breath.

When they entered the house, they saw that the kitchen had indeed been turned into a makeshift transmission station. Bulma's personal lab was being renovated (aka rebuilt after a small explosion), so gadgets, supplies and gizmos littered the counters. She had a set of the blueprints for the transmitter in front of her, but she was probably having a hard time deciphering them with her eyes closed and forehead resting on the table.  
“Mom, are you ok?” Mirai asked with a hand on her shoulder. Her head snapped up, eyes taking a moment to focus before she spoke.  
“Oh, thank God” she said, standing up and walking out of the room without even acknowledging them. Mirai let her go, she was even less of a “morning” person that he was. Gohan sighed. She hadn't gotten very far on the transmitter, but she had managed to make some notes on adapting it to the spaceships' power supply restrictions... Well, no time like the present, Gohan thought as he sat down. Mirai poured himself a cup of coffee and joined him, being familiar with the plans.  
“Oh, and just for the record “Boss”, I'm calling in sick after this...” Gohan said with a tired sigh.  
“Do you think anyone will notice if I don't show up either?” Mirai half-seriously joked.

Blast off was delayed by 20 minutes, but not due to the boys being unable to finish in time. Right before they were about to leave, Gohan jokingly asked his Dad what he'd had to promise Mom in order to pacify her over this trip. He cocked his head to the side, hand on the back of his neck...  
“Oops, I knew I was forgetting something!” he said as he IT'd away. Vegeta shook his head, having already said what counted as goodbye's for him, and boarded the ship. A few minutes later, Goku was back.  
“Thanks son, your Mom would have been real mad if I forgot to tell her I was leaving” he said, patting him on the back. Gohan just shook his head, mimicking Vegeta, and pushed him towards the ship.  
“Better get going, if you take too much longer Vegeta's liable to leave without you!”  
“I don't know why he hasn't already, I could have just IT'd onto it... Oh well, see you guys later, take care of your mothers!” And with that he IT'd directly onto the ship, which shortly blasted off into the creeping light of morning.

That stupid feeling wouldn't stop nagging the back of his mind. He knew he shouldn't let his Dad get to him, it was pretty much that man's only job to be a royal asshole, but somehow he just couldn't let it go. After everything he had seen and done, all the lives that existed now which would not have without him – he still could never earn that man's respect. So he hadn't trained in a while... It wasn't like he was the sole protector of the Earth anymore, with everything counting on him... The problem was though (his nagging feeling informed him), his own life was living proof that you never knew when you might be...

Gohan pushed his noodles around his plate absently. It was helping number 4, which normally would have gone down instantly, but today, something was just, off... He remembered a time when Friday afternoons were not the beginning of the weekend; when they only signaled a longer stretch of training, uninterrupted by schoolwork. He hadn't even stepped foot in a gravity chamber in what, over a year? And that last time was just to mess around with Goten... When was the last time before that? His normally precise memory couldn't conjure up a date... not even a best guess... Ok, working backwards then, when was the last time he distinctly remembered training? He and Mirai used to work out together all the time when he first came back, until they began getting “distracted” by other methods of exertion... Oh my God, had it really been that long?

 

“Call it a backup plan” Mirai suggested. Bulma was not convinced.  
“I don't care what you call it, it doesn't seem like everything is on the up and up here” she replied.  
“Look, it's actually a three-fold strategy,” Mirai tried explaining it slightly differently, “First, Trunks being cut off will have even more of a psychological impact if you 'promote' Bulla for all her hard work at the same time. I know you have your reservations about it, but really, and this is my second point, she needs to learn it – there may be a day when she has to do it, and that's a poor time to start familiarizing yourself with something this complex. Thirdly, we won't exactly be goofing off here; this will help the Earths' defenses as well.” Bulma sat back in her chair, staring at him intently. It wasn't actually that he needed her permission, it was just that he didn't dare do it without her approval.  
“You know, for all the times I've had to take the well-being of the Earth into account in my personal affairs, you'd think I was in charge of it or something – I should have a city named after me by now at least...” she mused. Leaving him hanging for just a moment more, she finally leaned forward and grabbed a legal pad off of his desk, snatching a pen as she did as well.  
“Ok” she started, “BUT, I have terms, you can't go running off tomorrow and leave me high and dry. I want a detailed list of all the projects and negotiations you're working on right now, and for you to stick around for at LEAST a couple of weeks, more like a month, to make sure she gets the hang of it – I'm not going to be able to hold her hand with this since I'll probably end up filling in for Gohan myself 'till I can find a team to replace him. Now, this is a list of what I'll need from him beforehand as well; his notes are very well organized, but I know he doesn't always write all his ideas down...” They haggled for about a half an hour before Bulma finally left his office. Mirai had never been so happy to have so much paperwork ahead of him. Plus, the time it took to transition everything here would let him conduct his own search as well.

“Ex-military for sure, I don't think just a regular martial artist is going to cut it for what we have in mind” Gohan commented, “we need someone who can come at this from the angle of battle/warfare training.”  
“Yeah, we've got the 'unity of body and mind' thing down, it's just a matter of sharpening the sword again, so to speak” Mirai agreed.  
“Now that we're doing this, I'm actually kind of glad our Dad's are gone... If mine had seen me in the GR this morning, I probably would have died of embarrassment” Gohan admitted.  
“Why... when did it get to you?” Mirai inquired.  
“...two hundred and fifty...” Gohan confessed hesitantly, still embarrassed.  
“Damn, then you held up better than me apparently, even if not by much – I got to 240 and shut it down when it dropped me to my knees” Mirai confided as well.  
“This is long overdue.”  
“Yes.”

The internet was extremely helpful, and extremely distracting. Mirai had started with a search on personal trainers, but saw quickly that those types of “instructors” were out. It was after almost an hour that he finally found something promising. A banner ad was actually were he found the link to the cage fighting world. These guys were all mixed martial artist, so that was perfect. While doing a little digging on profiles, he also found that almost all of them had military backgrounds, something Gohan had wanted. There was not as much info on their trainers as on the fighters themselves. He figured they should at least watch one of these matches, see this kind of thing in action before pursuing this avenue. Some things looked fine on TV for the masses, but turned out to be an obvious farce when you could see it happening right in front of you. He pulled up the season's schedule and scanned the dates. It would take some juggling, but he was pretty sure he and Gohan would be able to make it to the fight next Saturday night.

He and Mirai had never really gone to any sort of “sporting events” so Gohan wasn't really sure what to expect, but Mirai insisted they go. The “cage” was a system of chain link fence that was wrapped around a set of scaffolding over a boxing ring. He supposed it looked more impressive to a human. The audience was seated at a series of tables across the arena, with the tables closer to the action costing the most. They hadn't thought to get tickets ahead of time, he had just assumed you showed up & paid to get in... They even had a bar and were serving appetizer platters, which Gohan thought was kind of strange, but who knows, maybe he was the weird one here... They did manage to get seats, and with their superior senses it didn't really matter that they were so far back.  
The first match was real. Mirai was actually starting to have a good time, seeing two skilled fighters put up against each other, never mind that they weren't the strongest, toughest beings in the universe, they put on a good fight. The second match spoiled his mood though – the fighter in the orange shorts had obviously thrown it. Gohan stopped watching it at all in favor of chowing down on his nachos. His attention wandering, he picked up on a conversation that was happening quietly to the left of them, behind the entrance to the fighters' locker rooms. He was not normally an eavesdropper, but the topic of said conversation was the same as what was going on in front of him. He couldn't help but have his curiosity piqued.  
“Throw the fight? Have you fucking lost it Merle?” an angry voice asked.  
“Look, we both know you need the fat payout that goes with it just as much, if not more, than I do; I had to say yes” the man he assumed was Merle replied.  
“Bullshit. You didn't 'have to' anything, the pay out from winning the fight the right way is big enough.”  
“Is it?”

It got so quiet for a second Gohan thought they had moved beyond the reach of his ears, but then that stern voice spoke up.  
“You should have known better than to go there Merle – you're fired.”  
“Now wait a minute you little shit,” Merle said louder.  
“I already put in an agreement on it – if you don't follow through it's not just both our hides getting tanned, we will be on the six foot fucking under list, Roane. Do you understand me?”  
“More and more by the minute” Roane said. There was a very minor scuffling sound, then the man who must have been Merle came out of the locker rooms. He was definitely not a fighter, he must be the guys' trainer/agent or something. Gohan watched him make his way across the room to the bar and plop down at it angrily. When the third and final fight was about to start, Gohan was now quite interested to see how it would turn out.  
The fighter, Roane, looked like all the other fighters they had seen tonight, with the exception of two things. Oh, he was well built, tall, and muscular, to be sure... But for one, he was a redhead, like bright freakin' red, redhead; and two, the look in his eyes was a strange combination of focused and pissed. He walked out behind his ex-trainer, apparently keeping up appearances for the show, who opened the door in the “cage” for him. Gohan and Mirai both leaned forward in their seats as the match got underway, Gohan having very quietly passed on what he heard earlier to him.  
This guy was good. His control was impeccable, every hit precise and accurate. He was not going to lose, that much was clear. It made Mirai wonder what kind of trouble this guy was about to bring down on himself for doing the right thing. Suddenly, halfway through the match, the rules of the game changed though. After two bogus calls from the referee in a row, Roane was looking beyond pissed – his eyes looked dangerous, like Vegeta's before he was about to smear you into the ground while muttering about his pride. Only, from what he could tell, this guy's anger was justified. Gohan wondered if they were going to see someone die tonight.  
“Come on ref!” the cries from the crowd were getting loud as well. Gohan scanned the mass of people, his eyes lighting on one disgruntled trainer just as he was raising a glass in salute and giving an evil grin to his ex-employer. Son of a bitch.  
“Looks like he found a way to get what he wanted after all,” he said as he nodded his head in Merle's direction, “I guess it doesn't matter whether he loses out-right or is disqualified, as long as he doesn't win...” Gohan fumed. He hated corrupt people getting away with stuff like this, but it wasn't like he had proof of anything to be able to change it.

When the third call he was waiting for was made, Roane didn't yell or throw a fit, didn't even acknowledge his opponent. He crawled out of the cage determinately, walking away from the ring as the crowd howled around him. Merle looked as if he was going to try and intercept him, to say god knows what at this point, but he wasn't intimidated. He stepped around him before he could open his mouth, and kept walking. He would just have to start over, find a new manager... At least he would still have the small amount of reputation he had built for himself, hopefully he would be able to get back on the circuit fairly quickly. Bills needed paid... His locker room planning session was thankfully uninterrupted, since he had locked the main door behind him. He showered and dressed in silence. When he opened the door to leave the lockers, he was pleasantly surprised to find the hallway empty. Maybe Merle had actually taken a hint and was going to leave him alone after what he had done.  
“Roane, wait up.” Of course, waiting for him in the alley, how original... He had a couple of gym bags slung over his shoulder, which was odd, the sharks didn't usually pay up that quickly.  
“One of these is for you” he said, holding it out like he was doing the most benevolent thing of his career by trying to give him what was technically his already. Except Roane didn't want any part of it.  
“You're a scum bag Merle, go to hell” he said as he swatted the bag to the ground, hopefully forcing Merle to pick it up again before taking any other actions. He needed to get the hell out of this alley, surely there were more assailants waiting in the wings. Roane braced himself for this bad day to continue and walked off toward the main street – police always asked so many questions when you were the only one left standing. He heard Merle coming up behind him, and he readied himself to be attacked, but nothing happened. Merle walked past him without another word and hailed a taxi, disappearing into the night with his ill gotten gains. Roane breathed a small sigh of relief. He was confident in his abilities; he didn't think he'd have been in any real danger from Merle and whatever thugs he might have found. The additional trouble it would have caused would not have been pleasant though. He set off down the street, walking toward what would not be his home for very much longer. He could no longer afford things like taxi's or rent.

When Mirai and Gohan got home after the fight, they immediately agreed that this Roane guy was worth looking into. Gohan tended to want to believe the best of people all the time, it was his nature – but Mirai was more cautious.  
“One right doesn't necessarily correct a lifetime of wrongs.”  
“You don't know that he's done anything like that” Gohan countered.  
“Exactly my point, we don't know – just give me a week to check this guy out, then we can hunt him up next weekend if we think he's still suitable” Mirai offered.  
“Ok, I guess we do still have plenty of time.”

Mirai walked into Gohan's lab unannounced, and sat on the edge of his desk, holding a file folder. It wasn't lunch time yet, so he assumed that folder was the reason he was here, which meant it was probably the results from the investigation. He put the report he was working on aside.  
“So, what did you find?” he asked.  
“Not a lot, and plenty” Mirai teased him.  
“Well, start with the not a lot then” Gohan said, trying to move the conversation forward. Mirai smiled.  
“No arrest record, so that's good, and no reason to believe he has any 'aliases' so to speak, though there was one thing, but it's small, not even verifiable. The girl I talked to said that it was strange for him to have a file if he'd never been arrested, unless he was a minor and it got expunged later – but I got the feeling she wasn't supposed to be telling me that” Mirai said with a wink.  
“I think we can deal with that – it couldn't have been that bad if they cleared it off afterward; a lot of guys do silly things they regret as teenagers” Gohan commented.  
“Yeah, like get married” Mirai jabbed.  
“Fuck you, you were 9” Gohan said automatically, as if it was the required response, looking at him with a sarcastic fake-smile on his face. “Can we please stay on subject here? This is for Bulma, and she's not as forgiving of her reports being late when you're distracting me as you are.”  
“Fine, fine – on with the plenty. Roane Flynn - he was an orphan, which might explain the potentially troubled youth. He joined the military right at 18, served two tours, came back and was a drill instructor for a couple of years before being discharged. Since then he's been running on this cage fighting circuit, which is less than a year. Apparently he's completely broke, lives in a studio apartment in one of the bad area's of town, doesn't have a car, etc.” Mirai finished, thumbing the edge of the file like a fan.  
“Well, I say we try for a meeting in person then, I think this could work” Gohan gave his approval.  
“I think so too” Mirai said as he stood up from the desktop, “We'll try for Saturday morning – somehow, I think this guy might be an early riser.”

The number of his apartment had fallen off the door, but the outline it left in the paint let them know they had the right place. Mirai knocked. After a moment, the door opened a few inches, still chained to the wall.  
“What do you want?” Roane said gruffly.  
“I'm Mirai, and this is Gohan – we would like to discuss a business proposition with you, if you have a minute” Mirai began. Roane rolled his eyes and began to close the door. Gohan heard him muttering something about them “having to do better than that” as he used his foot to keep Roane from getting it closed all the way.  
“Please sir, just hear us out, what we'd like is for you to become our trainer of sorts – we saw what happened to you at the fight last weekend, and we think you are just the kind of guy we're looking for” Gohan interjected. Roane wasn't visible through the crack of the door, but he could sense him standing there, listening. Finally, he spoke.  
“Move your foot.” It was not a request. Gohan slid his foot back, and the door promptly slammed closed the rest of the way. Gohan turned his head to Mirai, as if to say, “What do we do now?”, but was interrupted from actual speech by the sound of the chain sliding back. He opened the door and stood back from it, motioning them in with a nod.  
“Alright, make it quick” he said.  
The room was large for a studio, but tiny to be an actual living space as far as Mirai was concerned. There was a large duffel bag sitting on the edge of the neatly made bed. It was half full of clothes, and a drawer was still open next to it, ready to be emptied. He noticed a few pictures containing groups of men in fatigues, but no other decorations were to be found. The room was sparse, and everything in it looked used or worn, but well taken care of and surprisingly clean for a single guys' place.  
“Well, I'll cut to the chase here, since you seem to be busy,” he said nodding to the half-packed bag.  
“My name is Mirai Briefs, and this is my partner, Son Gohan. We went to that fight of yours hoping to get a lead on someone to help us get back in shape, so to speak” Mirai said while handing him his card.  
“We're both martial artists already, but have gotten way out of practice, and finally decided to do something about it” Gohan added. Roane took the card from him, barely glancing at it and then stowing it in his pocket.  
“We would pay you well, money isn't a problem,” Mirai informed him, “and we're talking about some serious training here, not 'personal trainer' type stuff. I'm in the process of purchasing a facility that would be a round the clock housing for it, so we would live there and train 5 or 6 days out of the week.”

When Mirai mentioned an actual number for his potential reimbursement, Roane snorted. That was more than he'd made in the last three years put together; these guys could not be serious.  
“I'll think about it” was all he said though, trying to hide his disbelief and hope. If this turned out to be legitimate, it would solve so many problems – but he had learned the hard way to never take anything at face value.  
After the two strange men had gone, he picked up the phone to make a few calls. Having friends on the inside certainly helped now and then.  
“Hey Bear, it's Roane – yeah, I know, long time no see – say, I was hoping to call in a small favor actually...”

Interesting – if his friends in “Intel” said these guys checked out, then it was a pretty safe bet that he had just found one of the sweetest jobs in existence. The one named Mirai had very little background on him, but he was most definitely the President of Capsule Corp. Talk about an easy ride. The other one, Gohan, looked like he was a typical successful scientist, plush job as the head of his department, multiple degrees from prestigious universities, etc. The only thing off in his perfect life was a rather messy divorce many years ago – but the way Mirai had said 'partner' when he introduced him basically explained that...  
Could his luck finally be changing? He never seemed to get a break, not that he placed any kind of faith in those sort of things. If there was though, it seemed like fate must have been saving up to bestow two spoiled rich brats on him; who wanted to pay him to pound them into shape... He went ahead and dialed Mirai's number, and was greeted by a cheerful secretary who put him right through. He could practically hear the smile on the other man's face when he agreed to take the job – he just hoped his list of demands needed to get it done right would not scare them off...  
“Of course, we should get together again to iron out the details when Gohan is available too – let me pull up our schedules here... How about Wednesday at 10:30? That's lunch for us, just come down to Capsule Corp.'s lobby and I'll have my secretary Joanne waiting to show you in.”

If Mirai and Gohan were trying to intimidate him in some way by having them meet in the grandeur that was Capsule Corp, they were going to be sorely disappointed. Roane enjoyed the technological marvels of the place, but he knew Mirai was not the one responsible for all this. Having success handed down to you and being able to keep it up was all well and fine, but this dynasty had been built by the man's grandfather and mother. It was their blood and sweat that had made this place what it was, everyone knew that. He expected to be lead into a plush office full of expensive but useless knick knacks, but to his surprise, they ended up in the Research and Development wing.  
Mirai and Gohan were standing by a table in the corner, with an outrageous amount of food spread in front of them.  
“Ah, welcome, right on time, perfect.” Gohan said as he reached out to shake his hand. Mirai did likewise, greeting him as well.  
“Shall we eat first? I always negotiate better on a full stomach” Mirai joked. Roane nodded, it made no difference to him. He sat down, straight backed, in the chair that was offered him. Mirai unconsciously straightened a bit as he sat down as well.  
If Mirai and Gohan were trying to intimidate him by eating their own weight in food, it was kind of working. Where the hell did they put it all?...  
Gohan knew it was difficult to get people to understand just how “different” he and Mirai were without actually coming out and saying they were half-alien, so they had devised a series of steps to hopefully work Roane's mind up to it. He needed to know this was no ordinary workout they were hoping to get. When they were finished, there wasn't a scrap of food left on the table, and Joanne came in to clear the dishes as if their was nothing abnormal going on at all.  
“Now Mr. Briefs, are you sure you don't want dessert today?” Joanne asked, concerned.  
“No, no, I'm fine for now – I may take you up on a snack later though” he winked. Joanne rolled her eyes dramatically and turned to leave with a smile; even at 60, she could still enjoy a little flirting here and there, she was only old, not dead...  
Mirai turned back to the task at hand, and saw Gohan shaking his head.  
“Anyway, Mirai told me about some of your requirements for taking this job, like having a system of punishments/rewards in place, and we think having something like that sounds fine. Also, we want you to know this isn't some under the table deal here, you'll receive full benefits in addition to the salary, as well as your own quarters on base. Food will be provided on base as well. In regards to the actual training, all your requests are fine, but there are a few things we need to make you aware of. We have this thing called a Gravity Room, which can exert forces in excess of 1000 G's within it's walls. We have been training in these things almost all our lives. Our bodies are able to handle forces that would destroy a regular person” Gohan paused, seeing the skeptical look on Roane's face.  
“I know it sounds hard to believe, but we can also fly... That's something you might want to take into account when putting together your drills.” Before Roane could make the disbelieving snort that was forming in his throat, Mirai levitated up from the table, and over to the window. Roane's eyes followed him, his brain expecting this to be some sort of elaborate trick or prank, wires must be involved or something... until the man flew out the window. He didn't go far before doubling back and setting down on the tile again. He looked from Mirai to Gohan and back.  
“Ok, so if you two can fly, where did you learn it?” Roane questioned them. They already had the perfect answer ready.  
“Well, we were both students of the martial arts legend, Master Roshi – he even taught us his Kamehameha Wave as well” Gohan stretched the truth, juuuuust a little.  
“Master Roshi, the Master Roshi?!?”  
“Yes, the old turtle hermit himself.”  
“Why on earth would you need me then?” Roane asked in shock. Mirai and Gohan quickly exchanged a “knowing” look before Gohan answered.  
“Well, his advancing age prevents him from taking on anymore students, he just wouldn't be up to the task” he said, “we need someone who knows how to be tough and can can focus on the task at hand.”  
“Yeah, I guess he would be pretty ancient by now” Roane replied, thinking.  
“Ok, I'll agree to do this on one more condition, you have to teach me how to fly and use the Kamehameha as well” he crossed his arms over his chest.  
“Deal” Gohan said with a smile.  
“I'll have the actual contract drawn up this afternoon, and we can swing by with it tomorrow if you like” Mirai offered.  
“Sounds good” Roane said, shaking their hands. Unbefuckinglievable.

 

When they showed up at Roane's door the next day, the reception was much more cordial. He even offered them something to drink from the mini-fridge in the corner.  
“Sure” Gohan replied, appreciating the gesture. He and Mirai accepted the small glasses of green liquid with raised brows.  
“It's wheat grass juice, very healthy for you... If you've never had it before, it's best if you drink it like a shot” he explained, raising his in toast.  
Ok... Mirai raised it to his lips, tipping the liquid back all at once. My god, that was the most disgusting thing that had ever passed over his lips, Mirai thought as he sputtered to get it down. Gohan was grimacing, but had fared better. Damn that was nasty. If he never tasted anything like that again, it would be too soon... He handed the glass back with what he hoped was a straight face, but from the grin Roane had on, he was betting he hadn't succeeded very well.  
“Maybe we should go ahead and get down to the business at hand” Gohan suggested politely, handing back his glass as well.  
“Of course, gentlemen. I read my copy of the contract earlier, and it looks like everything's correct” Roane indicated.  
Gohan began pulling documents out of his briefcase and arranging them on the small table, so they were all lined up and ready for signing.  
“Normally we'd just have you come down to the HR department and give you an ID tag, but since you're going to technically be in our 'private' employ, we figured a formal contract would be fitting” Gohan explained.  
“It's fine with me, I do like for everything to be on the up-and-up” Roane affirmed.  
“Well, I guess I'll lead us off then” Mirai said, pulling out a pen. Once they had all made their way through the forms en triplicate, Mirai turned and smiled at Gohan.  
“Well we're one step closer; I can't believe we waited so long to do this, now that it's happening” he told him. Gohan nodded, agreeing. Before they left though, Roane stopped them, pulling out a pen and paper.  
“Better give me your measurements now boys.”  
“Measurements? For what, exactly?” Gohan asked, still grinning in the moment though he was a bit confused.  
“For your fatigues... No one shows up for basic in a suit” Roane said, looking him up and down with a 'seriously?' expression, “I'll have them sent over to you, and you show up already wearing them and ready to go, I'm not messing around here” he informed them.  
“Oh, right, right...” Gohan said, laughing it off, and looking over to Mirai. With a grin Mirai reached for the paper, writing down both of their information, and then handed it back with a nod. After they had left, and were already driving back, Mirai had a moment to wonder just how far Roane would take their requested military theme... They had given him quite a bit of power after all, using the contract as a way to hold themselves accountable as well. He shrugged it off, it was too late now to start second guessing things, and honestly, if it turned out to be harsher than he had expected, that wouldn't be a bad thing.

A stack of blueprints was spread out across their living room floor. Gohan sat cross legged with his back against the edge of the couch, pen and paper in hand, scribbling furiously. He paused to chew on the end of his unfortunate writing utensil for a moment, then made a few more notes – Mirai knew better than to interrupt him when he was that deep in thought.  
“Dinner's here, babe” he said, planting a kiss on Gohan's temple once he had set down the notepad. Gohan raised an eyebrow at the nickname, as they rarely used those.  
“Aw, I can't help it, you're so cute when you're being nerdy” Mirai teased him. Gohan shook his head and accepted the plate of food without further comment. Better to just change the subject, otherwise playful protests would turn to play, and he really needed to get this done tonight.  
“When did you say the sale on the base was supposed to be finalized, tomorrow?” Gohan asked him.  
“Yeah, hopefully, or at the latest by Thursday” Mirai backed off, settling down to eat his own food. They talked a bit between mouthfuls about the system Gohan was building, or systems he was merging rather. In looking through the plans to help with installing an improved GR on the base, they had come across the old scans of Android 16 in his Grandpa's files as well. He was pretty sure Gohan had only opened them out of nostalgia at the time, but something in them had sparked his curiosity... He eventually came up with this plan of merging the kind of analytical system the android had with a scouter's capability to detect and read power levels. The final product would be a system that would allow a normal human to track the progress of a half-saiyan super warrior, and provide insight to their weaknesses and strengths as well. It wasn't the kind of thing to just be left laying around though – when they were finished they would probably have to destroy it to keep it out of the wrong hands...

 

Roane had come by early in the morning, the day before their lives were set to change, to pick up the first half of his salary. With a check that large in his bank account, he was bound to be in a good mood on their first day of training. Mirai had a feeling that it wouldn't matter what kind of mood he was in though, it would still be difficult – which was the whole point.  
They had discovered that when left alone and to their own devices, all thought went out of their heads, and the kind of training they meant to do just never got done... They needed accountability, they needed focus and no distractions. Roane was perfect for keeping them on task; plus the renovations they had done to their newly acquired property would ensure that none of them got bored.

They had agreed to show up promptly, at 6am that morning, to the front gates of the compound; carrying/wearing nothing but the fatigues and boots they had been given. They were excited actually, neither could sleep properly the night before they were to 'report' for their first day. After making sure their home was secured and ok to be left unattended for the indefinite future, they decided to go ahead and fly in, since it was still dark this time of year. When they landed in front of the large fence, right on time, they could tell that he must have been already waiting for them. Flood lights switched on and poured into the empty darkness around the gate as it slowly began rolling open. While Mirai's eyes adjusted, the only thing running through his head as he grinned was that this was going to be awesome.


	2. Getting With The Program

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this one, the boys get more than they bargained for ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Notes: This Gohan x Mirai fic is set in Lord Truhan’s “Sergeant” universe.

“What the fuck am I looking at?” Roane cursed at them before he was even within 10 meters of the gate. Gohan blinked, standing up straighter as their new 'commanding officer' approached, looking as pissed as Gohan had only seen a few people get in his lifetime. His default grin was plastered across his face before he could think of a better reaction, and he realized he was rubbing the back of his neck before he could stop himself. Damn genetics. Locking on as if drawn to the movement, Roane was in front of him in a heartbeat, smacking his arm down and yelling in his face from a proximity that let Gohan know he used mint flavored toothpaste.  
“Is that how you salute your superiors? Is this fucking funny to you? What the fuck so you have to be so happy about, sunshine?” Roane demanded to know. Gohan blinked and shook his head, taken slightly aback, but for some perverse reason, still unable to stop smiling. Perhaps it was because he was glad they had chosen someone who wasn't afraid to put them in their place...  
“No, nothing's funny...sir” Gohan hastily added a 'sir' to the end of his answer. As a response, Roane manhandled him into a proper salute, yelling at him to wipe the grin off his face or else he would do it for him.  
Mirai couldn't help it, he snorted a bit at seeing anyone with the last name 'Son' being told not to smile. Roane rounded on him immediately, leaving Gohan standing in the salute while he addressed other issues.  
“Where the fuck do you get off, showing up to my base, fucking looking like that?” he inquired loudly, looking quite enraged, for his part. In fact, Mirai was actually beginning to wonder if he'd really offended him somehow.  
“What do you mean, sir?” he asked, following Gohan's lead with the 'sir' thing.  
“What do I mean? What the fuck do I mean? You expect to go through this training; to fight and sweat and bleed with that long fucking hair swishing around all the time? Like you're some sort of fucking flower child, trying to find a way to 'express' yourself? I don't fucking think so. Not on my base. You've got a lot of nerve for someone who looks like such a fucking pansy. Do you feel like a pretty flower, daffodil? Is that what I should call you from now on? Huh, rose?” Roane yelled in his face. Whatever anger that was raised at Roane's harshness was quickly quelled as Mirai realized he was right about his long locks only getting in the way. It was just something he had gotten used to, over time, brushing it out of his face or out of his way as he worked. If he was going to do anything more than lift a pen or fork, he automatically tied it back, like he had today, but that just wasn't going to cut it for the level of intensity they were going for here. With a sigh, he nodded his head, agreeing with him.  
“Damn fucking right, daisy” Roane continued to yell as he made Mirai salute him properly as well. Shaking his head as he evaluated their saluting posture, he circled them like a hawk, telling them to stand up straighter, heels together, etc. Finally satisfied, he walked a few steps to a waiting golf cart that they had overlooked before. Grabbing a bullhorn from the back of it, he switched it on as he climbed into the driver's seat. Everything that was yelled at them took on a whole new echo as Roane's voice ordered them to follow, and then he zipped away across the pavement. Hurrying to catch up, Gohan and Mirai obeyed right away; when this guy had said he was not fucking around, he was serious. Gohan wasn't sure that physically insulting Mirai had been necessary, but he could see the logic of his argument over the long hair. He wanted to cry. It was Mirai's decision though, he supposed. He also supposed that the reaction from Roane would not be pleasant if he asked to be able to keep a piece of it once it was cut...  
The golf cart stopped in front of one of the many nondescript buildings on the facility, and Roane hopped off, opening the door.  
“Inside! Move it you two!” he barked. Virtually jogging inside, they were met with a row of barber chairs and a long, wall length mirror.  
“Attention!” Roane barked again. Gohan and Mirai had seen enough action/war movies to know that meant stand up straight and salute, so they went back to the pose Roane had shown them a moment ago. Then Roane stepped back, looking Mirai in the eye, and pointed to the various barber's implements lined up on the ledge under the mirror.  
“Time to fucking commit, soldier.”  
Mirai nodded and stepped forward, picking up a pair of scissors hesitantly. Taking a deep breath, he raised a shaky hand up toward his face, grabbing a fistful of hair and beginning to cut it short. He made sure it was above his ears, too short to get in his eyes, and as even as he could manage. At least Roane didn't seem to be upset that it was taking him a few minutes to get the job done. Mirai was actually much more concerned about what Gohan would think, and purposefully hadn't looked at his lover's eyes in the reflection of the mirror yet. As he snipped the last chunk of hair, he glanced over Gohan's way, suddenly finding his heart beating too quickly for some reason. Gohan's eyes were wide, like he was watching the saddest act in a play. Of course, he noticed Mirai finally meeting his gaze right away, and gave him a determined smile.  
It didn't take long for Mirai to figure out what that smile meant, as Gohan stepped forward and picked up a pair of electric clippers. Switching them on, he had a calm, and well, determined, look on his face, though without the smile now, as he gave himself a very, very short buzz cut. Mirai watched with fascination, wondering how he had been blessed with such an amazing and loyal man. When he was done, Gohan faced him, and motioned for him to turn around. Mirai blushed a bit, realizing he'd not exactly done a fantastic job on keeping the back of his hair level. After Gohan finished trimming it up, he turned Mirai around to face him, his grin back full force as they locked eyes for a moment. The moment was cut abruptly short though, by Roane ordering them to clean up the mess they'd made, and on the double.  
“And wipe that god awful grin off your face, sunshine” Roane glared at them as they swept and mopped the floor, leaving it in as pristine condition as when they found it.  
“Alright, now that daisy here is finally in uniform, we can proceed with the tour of the grounds. Do not, fall behind” he ordered harshly again, jumping back onto the cart. As they ran behind him again, having various landmarks pointed out to them, Mirai wondered if they had just picked up nicknames that would be following them for the rest of their stay...

The golf cart came to a stop in front of a long, low building, and this time Gohan and Mirai immediately snapped to attention while they waited for him to step down. Still scowling, Roane ordered them inside again, clinging to his indignation at the way they had acted when they'd shown up at the gate. He pointed out two neatly made beds at the beginning of the long row of bunks.  
“This is where you come to pass out at the end of my scheduled activities, boys; that is, if you can drag yourselves here afterward. I will leave you laying on the fucking floor if you can't keep up, I am not your goddamn babysitter. Even if you don't manage to make it back here for the night, you will still be up, dressed, and have your beds made properly by 6am every morning. A wake up call will be provided at 5:30am, not for your convenience, but for my amusement. When I walk through that door you had better be standing at the foot of your perfectly made bed, at a perfect fucking salute, while in perfect uniform. If you are not, I will make you regret the day you ever crawled out of your mother's cunt. Do I make myself clear?” Roane made sure to yell directly in each of their faces' equally, not picking favorites.  
“Yes, sir” they both answered, still standing at attention, eyes a bit wide.  
“Good, now get your sorry asses back outside” he finished. Their next stop was the large building right beside the barracks, though Roane had them run the entire perimeter of the compound before coming to a stop again in front of it.  
“This, for all intents and purposes, is our supply closet. If I tell you to clean something, the soap will be found in here, if you need a new pair of socks, do not fucking come crying to me about it, you go get it yourself. Everything you need is in here, and if it isn't in here, then you don't fucking need it” Roane explained to them with the bullhorn, in case their ears were too full of pounding blood from their run to hear him properly. As a dual “Yes, sir” met his own ears, he opened the door. Flipping on a light switch, row upon row of cleaning supplies and other everyday items were revealed, stacked neatly on tall shelves that reached the ceiling. Toothpaste, shampoo, towels and even wash clothes were all designated specific spots. Roane grabbed a multi-pack of soap off the shelf and began tearing it open.  
“Everything has a place. For a thing to not be in it's place is a concept I suggest you put out of your minds right fucking now, before it causes you pain” Roane advised them. “If you open a bar of soap, the rest of the package does not magically fucking go on a different shelf, or floor, or window sill after that.” He rolled over a mop and wringer bucket, taking the handle of the mop and poking it under Mirai's chin so his head lifted up a bit farther. “When you mop the floor, regardless of whether I let you use a fucking mop, you will firmly secure the tops of all cleaning solutions. There are chemicals in this room whose fumes, when mixed together, can cause noxious and fucking flammable gasses. If you find yourself having a hard time recalling this particular rule, just remember the immortal words of my good friend Sargent Bear every time you walk through that door,” Roane turned his head so he was looking at Gohan even though he still had the mop handle under Mirai's chin, “Caps are like asses, give them a good screw and you've nothing to worry about” he said with a perfectly straight face.  
Gohan blinked. He could tell Roane was just waiting for him to crack a smile, though he was under the distinct impression that he would still get berated for it even though he'd obviously done it on purpose. The moment of wondering what the hell kind of person would even say something like that did not help him focus. His will power fading, Gohan bit the edge of his tongue, applying more and more pressure until the urge to smile passed, tasting a small hint of blood in his mouth as he did.  
Roane must have finally been satisfied that Gohan was not going to take the bait, because he ordered them back outside with a, “Get the fuck out of here.”

Jumping back onto his mobile throne and circling around, he made them trot over to the other side of the square where the mess hall was located.  
“Food happens here” he yelled at them, pointing to the building, “And only, here. There will be no snacking, or munching, or taking of food of any fucking kind outside the walls of the mess hall. All meals will be timed. If you don't get it down your gullet by the time the bell rings, too fucking bad, sunshine” Roane said at a shout, staring Gohan down as if he could tell the beginnings of a small smile wanted to form at the mention of food. Gohan got himself under control though, once again struggling with his good natured instincts. Roane stared at him for a moment, then nodded curtly before leading them on another perimeter run.  
The next time they stopped was in front of an equally nondescript building as any of the others were. Gohan was thankful for his good sense of direction, or he'd have had a hard time remembering which one was what later, due to their repeated treks around the outer boundaries of the facility. This one turned out to be the showers.  
“Playtime” Roane started, drawing Gohan's concentration back immediately and making him raise an eyebrow, “takes place only on your time” he informed them.  
“Showers run for 5 minutes only; you soap up, you scrub down, you rinse off. No fucking in the showers, this isn't a fucking day spa” Roane said drilling a hole into Mirai's head with the proximity of his gaze.  
“Yes sir, I understand, sir” Mirai answered him, since he looked like he was expecting something.  
“Is that clear, Sunshine?” Roane asked, turning to Gohan.  
“Crystal, sir.”  
“Good.”

Gohan was beginning to wonder how many more stops there were going to be on this 'tour'. Surely not every single one of these buildings held something of importance to them, that they could be mildly degraded in while being instructed in the use of.  
“As per the details of our contract, you will have one day a week without any scheduled activities. However, I strongly advise you to use that time, since you are not permitted to leave the base anyway, to attend to things like your laundry” Roane lectured them as he paced up and down a row of washing machines and dryers. “Have either of you ever actually used a washing machine?” he said condescendingly.  
“Yes, sir” they both answered.  
“Oh really? Which one of you?” he asked.  
“We both have used washing machines, sir” Mirai answered him, trying hard to keep the annoyance out of his voice. Apparently he didn't succeed very well, because Roane came right over and got in his face.  
“Oh, well I'm glad to fucking hear that Daisy, because now, the time I don't have to use showing your pathetic asses how to operate these machines, can make up for the time we wasted on your little beauty parlor session this morning.” Mirai held his tongue, not trusting himself to speak again since Roane's comment didn't really require a response.  
“Outside, now!” Roane barked, startling both of them with his quick change of subject.  
After three laps in a row around the facility, he stopped at the center of the square that the main road from the gate led to. In the middle of it, there was a large marquee, for only god knows what original purpose, that Roane had converted into a very special reminder of exactly where they stood with him. On the right hand side, there was a long, long list of possible punishments, to be chosen from at Roane's discretion of course. On the left though, under the list of behaviors that would trigger punishment, he had simply written in, “Anything that fucking pisses me off.”  
“I think you'll find this pretty self-explanatory” Roane grinned at them for the first time since they'd stepped foot on base, “And the other side as well.” He hitched his head to the left, indicating they should go around and check it out. They both cringed mentally, seeing the list of 'rewards' on the other side was mostly just an earning back of lost privileges, and was much shorter. Under the column for what kind of behavior would be 'rewarded', Roane had penciled in the words “To Be Determined.”  
“Both lists are subject to change at any moment, on the whim of your gracious instructor” Roane informed them. Mirai was starting to regret that clause in their contract that let him alter the bonus/demerit system later if need be, as long as it fell within certain guidelines; like no permanent harm to them, or no exposing them to the outside world. Suddenly those did not seem like nearly enough restrictions.

After running a few more laps, they stopped in front of the mess hall again; fairly out of breath even though all this had been in normal gravity. Desk jobs had not been kind to their stamina, Mirai thought as he recalled having run two or three times this distance before without getting worked up.  
“Private Son, Private Briefs,” Roane addressed them, “it is now time for your mid-day feeding. You will have 20 minutes to eat, at which time a buzzer will go off, indicating that you had better get your asses outside and be standing at attention within the next 30 seconds, or there will be hell to pay. Do I make myself clear?”  
“Yes, sir” they responded.  
“Good, now get in there, your time starts now.”  
Gohan had been hearing Mirai's stomach growl as they ran, and let him enter the door first, not that it would make a huge difference. He was hungry too of course, and was glad to see several small mountains of food waiting for them. Not bothering with the cafeteria serving style the room was set up for, since it was just the two of them, all the food had been piled on one table. As they quickly dug in, one other thing became apparent; though it was nutritious and plentiful, taste had obviously not been a concern when the meal had been cooked. It wasn't bad, but the steamed rice and vegetables was just that, not even a hint of salt on the meat, nothing, in any of it. He would have paused to comment if their time hadn't been so limited. As it was, they both shoveled food into their mouths like there was no tomorrow, figuring that since the tour was over Roane would probably make them run or do something else exercise like for the rest of the afternoon.  
After the buzzer rang, and they were heading back out the door, Gohan spoke to Mirai out of the corner of his mouth.  
“I guess we'll be getting used to the 'natural flavor' of food here” he half whispered, not sure if they were supposed to talk.  
“I guess so... But it could be worse, I'd rather have my fill of bland food then have it be something disgusting, or even have it taste good but there not be enough of it” Mirai answered quietly, squeezing Gohan's hand and giving him a smile before they opened the door.

Roane was waiting for them outside, in the exact same spot as where they had left him, making Mirai vaguely wonder if he'd moved at all the entire time. Apparently they had made it back within the 30 seconds, though they hadn't exactly counted them, because hellfire did not immediately begin to pour down as they stood at attention.  
“Alright, listen up now” Roane said, as if they had been doing something else besides watching him closely, “The rest of the day will be spent taking some base-line measurements, so I can track your progress.”  
“Sir?” Gohan's voice sounded questioningly before Roane could get back in his golf cart. Roane raised an eyebrow and moved directly in front of him.  
“I have a hard time believing you are not familiar with the concept, private” he said, somewhat sarcastically.  
“Uh, actually I have a different question, sir, if that's ok” Gohan asked hesitantly. Crossing his arms over his chest, and looking Gohan up and down, Roane finally gave a curt nod, granting permission for the real question.  
“I was just wondering, sir, if we're allowed to talk to each other or you during the 'activities' you have planned for us” Gohan asked, “or if that would get us in trouble.”  
“Silence is only required when at 'attention' private, though I expect you to be focusing on your tasks, not flirting with your boyfriend” Roane informed him.  
“So a few words here and there are ok, as long as we don't get distracted, sir?” Gohan wanted to be sure.  
“Yes, soldiers are permitted to socialize at a minimal level while in training, but,” Roane paused, “if you have enough breath left to carry on a conversation, then I'm not doing my job” he smiled. Then getting back into his cart, he lead them over to the only new building on site, the one that housed the gravity chamber. They really hadn't needed any introduction to it earlier, having been the ones to design it. It would be their first time doing anything of significance under artificial gravity in a very long time, and though taking some base-line measurements didn't sound too bad, Mirai was beginning to get a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach.  
“How are you doing?” Gohan asked him quietly as they jogged, glad it wasn't out of line for him to do so, but not really wanting Roane to hear. It looked like something was bothering Mirai, but he didn't think either of them appearing 'weak' in front of Roane was a good idea.  
“I'm fine,” Mirai started, glancing at Gohan out of the corner of his eye. He had that 'knowing' look on his face though, so Mirai continued, “I guess it just kind of feels like we're really starting now” he said, giving him a smile. Gohan nodded in agreement, smiling back.  
“Yeah, no more tours or warm ups, here we go...” he said, quieting as they reached the door. They came to attention only to have Roane motion them inside almost right away. Walking down the corridor, Gohan followed Roane to the third door on the left, trying to ready himself mentally to perform as well as possible for the tests.

There were technically two separate gravity rooms inside the building, and as expected, Roane had lead them to the one housing a variety of weights and workout machines. The other was larger and clear of any equipment, meant to be used more for sparring and ki drills. Walking inside the current room, you would never have known you weren't back at Capsule Corp, trying to get Vegeta's attention in between ki blasts to tell him that dinner was ready... Mirai shook his head to clear the unnecessary clutter of memories. On a separate note, the lightness of his head now was going to take some getting used to. Taking a deep breath, he readied himself for the extra gravity to kick in after Roane shut the door on them.  
There was a set of controls and display on the inside of the room, but there was also a set in the 'command center' as they had taken to calling it when drawing up the prints. It was a separate room where Roane could watch, evaluate, and interact with them by remote camera, without the inconvenience of being crushed to death. The screen flashed to 50G three times before Mirai felt the familiar pull settle over him. Roane's voice came over the speakers, giving them a set of instructions on which machines he wanted them to use, and how many repetitions on each, etc. The nice thing about the system that Gohan had come up with was that they didn't have to wear wires or monitors while they trained, it could detect things like their heart rate, blood pressure, etc., with sensors built into the walls. It could also give a power level reading as well when switched into that mode.  
At only 50G's, Mirai was not even working up a sweat yet, and he was already halfway done with their assignment. He glanced over at Gohan, to see how he was doing, and was rewarded with a rather distracted looking smile after Gohan's eyes finally wandered up to his lover's face. Mirai grinned back at him, but stayed focused, knowing this was exactly the kind of thing that usually derailed them, but was not an option now. Neither of them had a problem putting in a good workout, it was just working out together that always seemed to bring up 'issues'.  
When they finished, the screen immediately flashed 100G, and Roane gave them a new set of instructions. Feeling it a little more now, Gohan was not quite as distracted as he had been for the last set, but it was a close thing. Knowing Roane was watching was all the deterrent needed to keep him from actually pulling Mirai aside and ravishing him, but it didn't stop him from imagining it. They were both developing a lovely sheen from the intensity of their efforts now, and Gohan nearly dropped a barbell on his foot while watching Mirai bend over to adjust the next machine he was about to use. When he straightened from retrieving it, he suddenly found himself looking into Roane's angry face.  
“What the fuck is your problem, Private Son? If this is all the attention you plan on paying, you can consider yourself evicted right fucking now!” he yelled at him through the monitor that had dropped down from the ceiling.  
“Sorry, sir. No, sir. I'll do better, sir” Gohan saluted to the screen.  
“Damn fucking right you will! Do not make me send you two to opposite sides of the room like some horny fucking teenagers with no self control!” Roane had the speakers set to full volume to make sure his voice carried well in the room's acoustics. The screen then zipped back up into the ceiling without further ado, and Gohan went back to his reps with a small blush across the bridge of his nose.  
When 150G kicked in next, it began to take longer to complete the routine laid out for them, though Gohan supposed it should have been about the same length as the others, under the other gravity. He watched Mirai wipe the beads of sweat from his forehead, but quickly focused back on his own set again. Feeling the strain and pull on his muscles actually felt pretty good, and was invigorating in it's own way.  
Mirai could tell Gohan was in the zone now, not letting himself get distracted anymore, which was good. Though it was flattering, of course, that he was still such a temptation, Mirai knew they should be taking this seriously. It wasn't as though he wasn't tempted to stare at the flex and bulge of his lover's muscles either, it was just that he felt somehow it was a matter of pride now. That they take pride in their abilities and status as part of Earth's defense force again. They needed to take the path of wisdom and keep up their skills, even in times of peace. He equated it to a more reasonable and altruistic version of Vegeta's all-consuming drive to be the best. They needed that same determination and focus, if not so much the intensity that never let him loosen up...  
Speaking of intensity, Mirai was woken from his thoughts by 200G settling on his shoulders, and Roane's voice instructing them to do alternating combinations of sit-ups and push-ups until further notice.  
“Until further notice? What does he mean by that?” Gohan wondered aloud, but lay down to comply immediately.  
“I don't know, I guess we'll find out” Mirai shrugged, not really having a good feeling about the phrase either. Having already been at it for hours now, and considering all the different levels of gravity they'd been working out under, Mirai's arms began to get a bit shaky as he finished the rep of 100 that put them at a grand total of 5000. There wasn't really anything to do but count them, though they hadn't been instructed to keep track.  
Gohan was drenched in sweat as well by this point, pausing only long enough to wipe his brow before switching to the next rep of sit-ups. On number 5100, total, he noticed the screen flash to 250G's. Giving almost identical grunts, both he and Mirai were pulled flat against the floor, their already tired muscles unable to keep up with that much force washing over them. Roane's face appeared on the wall in front of them, “Is that all you've got, Privates? Do you mean to tell me that's it? After all the time spent preparing for this, all the effort, when it comes down to it, you're just going to fucking give up and lay there like a sack of shit?” he chastised them, though he knew full well that 250 was Gohan's limit, and past Mirai's.  
“No sir” Gohan grunted, taking a deep breath and struggling to continue. He was afraid to turn his head too far and break his concentration, but he could hear Mirai struggling beside him as well.  
“No sir.” Forcing his body to push through, ignoring the aches and beginnings of pain, Mirai resumed his count on the sit-ups. He knew he wouldn't last forever, but was glad he had been able to keep up at least this long with Gohan. His abs screaming at him, he was actually rather amazed when he made it through the set. Maybe he had just forgotten what it was like to really push himself, he thought as he took a few deep breathes and turned over to start on the push-ups. Gohan had already started his, but he wasn't very far ahead, Mirai was pleased to see. His strength of will and determination basically carrying him through the push-ups, Mirai was caught off guard when he finished the set and was suddenly cheek to tile with the floor, unable to move.  
“Too...much...” Gohan panted. Having already turned over, he could see the screen showing 300G's now, though his eyes were the only thing he could move. Again, Roane's face and voice greeted them, “Did I say you could stop?” he growled at them. Gohan was working up the energy to try and at least grunt at him, when a small red light must have flashed on the board below the camera, because it reflected off Roane's face as he sighed and rolled his eyes. He moved away from the monitor, and suddenly the gravity disappeared around them, and the screen shut off. Mirai drew and almost gasp-like breath as his lungs were able to fill to capacity again. Frowning, Gohan hadn't noticed anything wrong with Mirai's ki, but now he was a bit worried. He worked up the energy to put his arm on Mirai's shoulder as they both lay there and caught their breath.  
Finally turning his head toward his lover, Mirai smiled at him, seeing the concern in his eyes. “I'm fine Gohan, no Saiyan ever died from a good workout” he chuckled. “I may not be able to get up for a while, but I've survived worse, trust me.” Shaking his head, Gohan sat up, though it took a considerable amount of effort.  
“So why do you think the gravity just cut out like that, if you were fine?” he asked, not entirely believing him. Gohan forgot the mechanical doors on the gravity room were soundless when opening and closing until Roane spoke up.  
“I cut it, there's a warning that's the first level of fail-safe built into the sensors, the one I can choose to ignore if I wish. It would have automatically shut off if it detected an abnormal heart rate or brain waves, but breathing was deemed 'discretionary' apparently” Roane informed them.  
“Right,” Gohan said. Thinking back to the code they had written for it, he remembered Bulma asking him something about that now, but he'd only cared at the time that it would shut off in the event that they were about to die. “You know, your Mom may have officially been hanging around Vegeta for too long now, if she thinks breathing is optional” he sighed.  
“Thanks, Mom” Mirai said to the tile beneath him, still not able to get up.  
“Thankfully for you two, I'm not a believer in destroying your body to try and get stronger. If you're too injured to train properly the next day, then that's counter-productive” Roane brought their attention back to him. “Today's session is over, you are now free to eat and shower, if you can manage it” he smirked. “Your first real inspection is still tomorrow at 6am sharp, Privates. I'll see you then.”  
It wasn't for a good twenty minutes after Roane had left them that Mirai was able to work up the ability to roll over and sit up. Groaning, he and Gohan finally made it to their feet after resting for another twenty or so after that. With the strict understanding that once they were down again, they'd be down for the night, they did their best to help each other out the door and back to the barracks. Halfway across the open area at the center of the base, a whiff of food-smell drifted across their path, making Mirai pause as his stomach tightened painfully.  
“Damn it” he said out loud. Gohan had stopped beside him, and hearing his stomach growl fiercely as well, Mirai ventured, “Maybe we should risk it...”  
“Food might help, actually” Gohan commented, eying the distance between them and the mess hall, and the mess hall and the barracks. Looking at each other with a nod, they shuffled in the new direction, the smell driving them on.  
Once inside, Gohan was pretty sure that the food only tasted this amazing because they were starving, but he didn't really care, he probably have eaten sawdust and liked it at that point. Shoveling as quickly as he could, he didn't stop until he had cleaned his side of the table of it's food. Since they'd already been excused for the day, they figured the time limit didn't apply, especially when no timer went off. Sitting there at the table, Gohan was sorely tempted to lay his head on the metal and succumb to sleep right there, but he wasn't sure if they'd be able to hear their 'wake up call' in here. Being late for Roane seemed like something that would be far worse than making himself get up right now was.  
“Yeah, we have to...might as well just get it over with” Mirai sighed, as if reading his mind. At least they weren't on the floor, and had the table for leverage to help them stand this time. Walking just as slowly, but with less pain now that their stomachs were full, Gohan and Mirai finally made it to the barracks. Mirai would not normally have called the cot like structure a 'bed', but at the moment, he couldn't have cared less. Not so much getting into them, as falling on top of them, they went to sleep immediately, closing their eyes on the first day of their new lives with an exhausted abandon.


	3. Obstacles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We wouldn’t want things to get dull, now would we?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Notes: This Gohan x Mirai fic is set in Lord Truhan’s “Sergeant” universe.

Mirai bolted upright from his sleep as the air-raid siren that had haunted his entire childhood screamed through the darkness around him.  
“Gohan!?”  
“What? Mirai?!” Groggy, and unable to see anything in the pitch black of the room, Gohan was more concerned about the edge in Mirai's voice than whatever the hell was going on now. Suddenly, the door to the barracks burst open and Roane switched on the lights, blinding them and starting to yell as the noise of the siren began to wind down.  
“Attention!” he demanded, scowling at them already. Blinking in the sudden light, Gohan and Mirai both scrambled to the end of their beds and stood up straight as they'd been instructed to do for morning inspections. All this week, Roane had used a highly amplified alarm clock buzzer, sounding over the bases' PA system, to wake them up. He would then come in at 6am sharp to evaluate them. The siren was a new development, as was his immediate appearance afterward. As Roane looked them over critically, Gohan heard his watch beep an hourly chime. Wait a second, that couldn't be right...  
“The enemy” Roane began, staring them down pointedly, “does not wait until you are well-rested to launch his offensive. Attacks can come at any time of the day or night” he lectured them. “Therefore, you have 2 minutes to be in uniform, starting now!” he barked, pressing the button on his stop watch.  
Jumping to obey him in the limited time allowed, Mirai pushed everything else out of his mind but dressing as quickly as possible. It wasn't until he and Gohan were jogging through the darkness outside that he registered it was still the middle of the night. Though the adrenaline had certainly gotten him going to start, he immediately felt the tiredness still in his mind and muscles at realizing that fact. It was also in this moment that he remembered tomorrow was supposed to be their day off... Damn. He supposed this was Roane's way of making up for not being able to work them to the bone on that day. He picked up his pace as Roane's cart accelerated, making them break into a full run to keep up.  
They were heading to a section of the base that he didn't remember seeing on the tour, but he could tell it was set up as some sort of obstacle course as they approached it. A tall, thick wall loomed as what he assumed was the beginning, since their commanding officer stopped directly next to it. Pulling out his bullhorn, Roane was kind enough to inform them that there was to be no flying on this course, as an explosion wracked the air to the right of them. The suddenness of the blast, along with being pelted by the dirt from it, caused them both to duck a bit and cover their heads instinctively.  
“That was the starting bell, Sunshine!” Roane roared through the ensuing din. “Get your ass the fuck up that wall, Daisy!” They ran forward to climb the wall as the sounds of gunfire began competing with the renewal of the siren from earlier. A little over halfway up, another explosion sounded and the wall they were on shuddered, making Mirai lose his grip on it. He landed with a thud on the ground again, only to realize the entire thing was leaning rather precariously now... In fact, it wasn't leaning, it was falling. Rolling quickly to the side, Mirai looked on wide eyed as Gohan barely managed to make it out from under the falling wall as well. Before they had time to complete the thought of 'what the hell kind of obstacle course is this?', Roane was in their faces with the bullhorn again.  
“The time's still ticking you lazy fucking assholes!” he yelled, kicking at them as they hastily stood and ran for the next obstacle. As they approached a massive spread of strung-tight barbed wire, which was suspended about a foot and a half off of what looked like a mud pit, Roane yelled the same word over and over at them.  
“Crawl! Crawl! Crawl!”  
With the height of the wire, Gohan knew 'traditional' crawling was out, and dropped down to his stomach, beginning to inch under it. The mud was indeed thick, making getting any traction in it extra difficult. Glancing over to see Mirai having a hard time as well, Gohan wondered if he'd have an easier time of it if he could dig in and push with his heels instead. Knowing it was a straight shot to the other side, he went ahead and rolled over on his back, accidentally brushing against a length of the barbed wire as he did so.  
“FUCK!” he yelled as soon as the passing jolt of electricity would let him breath again. Mirai stopped, looking at him with concern.  
“Are you ok? Gohan?” he asked, starting to reach for him.  
“Don't touch the wire” Gohan replied, panting a bit as he tried to gather his wits again, and waving Mirai off to let him know he was alright. Flexing his hands and other muscles, he could assess that no actual damage had been done by the voltage, but damn if it hadn't hurt like a bitch.  
“He electrified the barbed wire? Who the fuck is this guy?” Mirai said, frowning as he looked warily at the crisscross of pain waiting above them.  
“I don't know, but I bet you he'll make us do it over if we're not fast enough” Gohan said as he began moving again.  
“Fuck” Mirai concurred, picking up his pace as well.  
When they finally made it out of the electrified mud pit, they came up to a field of tall, randomly positioned columns. Receiving no additional instructions from Roane this time, they gave each other a quick glance and then warily stepped forward. The columns were at least twice as tall as they were, and large enough in diameter that they couldn't have reached all the way around them if they were to hug one. They were spaced just close enough together to prevent a clear view to the end of the section, and Gohan had a bad feeling about the too easy look of this 'obstacle'. He was just waiting for them to start falling over on them, or exploding around them...something. After weaving through for about 15 feet, Gohan stepped around one to be met with a line of orange goo heading straight through the air for him. His reflexes were a bit off though, from having been electrocuted a few minutes ago. The sticky substance hit all along the right side of him, coating most of his arm and leg. It seemed some of the columns were rigged with an apparatus that couldn't be seen from the front, that shot the goo at them when they stepped around it. Gohan sighed, knowing he'd for sure be docked in some way for getting gooed.  
“Gross” he heard Mirai's voice from a few columns away. Well, at least he hadn't been the only one to fail this section, he thought wryly to himself. Trying to catch up to Mirai's position, he kept up a more careful watch now, and made it close enough to see that his lover sported a long splash of orange that ran down the side of his left ear, all the way down his neck, arm, and side. They had both dodged a few more of the booby-trapped columns before Mirai turned to speak to him.  
“Hey, is it just me, or is this stuff starting to itch?” he asked. Now that Gohan thought about it, it definitely was...in fact, it was kind of starting to burn.  
“Yeah, I feel it too” he agreed, nodding his head and resisting the urge to scratch at the skin beneath the ooze. Mirai had stopped with his clean hand halfway up to his neck, as if to wipe it off, before realizing that would only serve to contaminate more of his skin. Just as he opened his mouth to respond, they heard a whirring noise behind them, and were only just in time to see one of the nozzles they had already cleared swiveling back toward them. Diving, they each made it behind a column in time to avoid it's spray, but were subsequently shot at by nozzles behind those as well.  
“Ok, so, staying in one spot is bad” Mirai commented, instead of whatever he'd been about to say. They didn't dare tarry in the middle of the obstacle again after that, and managed to make it through the rest of the columns without getting oozed a second time. By the end of it though, the burn had intensified to the point where it was fairly distracting. Mirai found himself checking the sky for any sign of daylight as they came up to the next section, wondering how much longer this could go on, and if the burning was going to continue to get worse...  
Gohan breathed a sigh of relief when they made it out, but he knew it wouldn't last long. Stretched out before them was a long, open field of freshly turned earth. He wouldn't have thought of it as an obstacle, and perhaps assumed they were done now, if he hadn't been able to see some sort of large scaffolding on the other side, and Roane's golf cart parked further down after that. All of a sudden the sirens and gunfire stopped, leaving his ears ringing in the silence. Then the floodlights of the base cut out as well, and it became nearly pitch black since the partly cloudy skies revealed very little starlight, and nothing of the moon. He heard a sigh beside him.  
“This is really going to suck” Mirai said, matter-of-factly.  
“Yeah, I'd put money on it” Gohan nodded.  
“You don't think he'd put live mines in our path, do you?” Mirai paused, standing at the edge of the tilled ground, “That could really hurt if we don't have our ki up...”  
“No, I don't think so, none of the stuff we've come up against so far has been at that degree of dangerousness, even the burn of this gooey stuff has leveled off” he pointed out. Just as he said the word 'off', both of them noticed the whirring sound behind them again. They tried to dodge the impending stream, but there was no cover out here. The nozzles adjusted to follow their motion, and they were hit with a wave of orange from behind, shot from multiple turrets at once.  
Cursing, and taking the hint, both of them sprang forward, hoping they'd be able to clear the end of the field and whatever it contained before their backsides really began to burn. Heading in a random, zigzag pattern (since he figured a straight line would be beyond foolish), Gohan did his best to stay alert and focused on the terrain. His mind flashed with a brief moment of regret though, to think that Roane wouldn't mine the field, when he felt his foot depress something metal beneath the dirt. Instead of an explosion, thankfully, the soft click was followed by a loud hiss as a jet of fog shot out of the ground beneath him. Though he didn't breath any of it in, it still stung his eyes and made him cough as he stumbled out of the cloud. He gulped a few breaths of cleaner air upwind, looking around to find that Mirai had discovered the fields' secret as well. Gohan could see his silhouette on it's hands and knees a few yards back, apparently having been less successful in avoiding a lungful of the gas.  
If it had been just the tears and coughing, he probably would have been fine; but it was the sneezing fit in addition to that which put him over the edge. Mirai tried to crawl away from the smoke as his diaphragm spasmed, unable to see anything through the burn of the tears; only to set off another of the hidden canisters. A mild layer of panic swept over him. He could barely get in a breath between the sneezes and coughs, let alone try to hold one in with the renewed presence of the smoke. As his mind reeled, he felt a pair of strong arms wrap around his waist, pulling him up and out of the noxious fog.  
“I don't think it's a good idea to stop” Gohan's voice was in his ear as his arms moved to support him, “Can you stand? Here... Alright, let's go.” With Mirai's arm over his shoulder, and holding onto him as best he could with the goo they were covered in, Gohan guided him along, not really expecting an answer through the hacking and sneezing. At least Mirai was able to move under his own power, though he would never have been able to see where he was going. Gohan began to question their ability to get through this thing even together when they set off another cloud 20 feet from the edge of the field. Forcing himself to break into a near run to clear it, he and Mirai finally stumbled onto the strip of solid earth between the field and the next obstacle, collapsing to the ground.  
Almost immediately, Roane was there next to them, wearing a full faced gas mask and kicking at their feet. With a groan, Mirai rolled over and tried to stand up on his own. Now that they were clear of the gas, which was thankfully disbursing and being blown back towards the columns, Mirai's eyes and breathing were beginning to clear. Thank goodness for Saiyan genetics. He and Gohan got up, eying the strange network of scaffold-like bridges and ropes that were in front of them. No time like the present, Mirai thought as he sighed, just wanting this to be over with already.  
After having helped Mirai up, Gohan was now nearly covered in the burning ooze. Thoughts of, “Just how were they going to get this stuff off themselves?” were starting to cross his mind. As he scaled the ladder up to the first platform, the burning at his back reached it's full potential. Looking down over the series of bridge ways, platforms, and ladders, he saw that the entire contraption was situated above a large pool of water. He almost wanted to dive into it straight off, in the hopes that the cool water would wash away some of the goo. Determined to do his best though, he headed out across the first bridge, avoiding with relative ease the hammer-like pendulums that swung out to knock him off.  
When Mirai crossed out onto the other bridge, he was definitely expecting something to happen, just not for it to fall out from beneath him. With a springing jump, he made it to the next section of platform, only to be blasted in the face by a large jet of water. Staggered back a little too far, he fell off the edge of the platform after all, and landed in the water below with a large splash. Roane was at the edge of the water, yelling at him through his bullhorn again when he surfaced.  
“Swim to the end, Private!” he pointed, indicating the far wall. Mirai swam a quick stroke to the end, taking a small amount of comfort in the fact that at least the goo had all sloughed away by the time he reached it. As he hauled himself out of the water, he realized his skin was still burning though. Turning around, he saw Gohan only a few strokes behind him in the water, having been knocked off as well. They stood there, soaking wet and feeling like they were on fire, just as the sun began to peek over the horizon. Surprisingly, Roane didn't berate them for their many slip ups, instead motioning them over to a stack of cardboard boxes behind his cart.  
“Those clothes won't survive this, as much of the acidic slime as you let yourselves get hit with” he said in a matter of fact tone, “Strip out of them and throw them in that bucket there.” Roane was opening one of the boxes as he spoke. Gohan and Mirai gave each other a quick glance as they obeyed, opting to leave their underwear on, as they had been when he pulled them out of bed earlier.  
“This will probably be easiest if you two lay down” he said, pulling out a large plastic jug with each hand. They both somewhat hesitantly complied, unsure if the course was done or not, now...  
“You might want to close your eyes and mouths” he advised them, and then began dumping the gallons of vinegar over their prone bodies. A collective sigh of relief rose from them, and Roane flipped the cap on a successive 4 more jugs with each hand, until they both were sated front and back. Squatting down between them as they lay on their stomachs in the pool of vinegar, Roane was looking off into the distance, perhaps even at the sunrise, as he spoke.  
“You can't ever count on the enemy doing what you expect, what you know and have seen before. All you can count on is your own determination and the support of your teammates. I won't say you did well out there, because frankly both your times sucked, but I am impressed that you stuck together as much as possible, and didn't leave each other behind. And as a reward for that behavior, I'm going to allow you as long of a shower as you want, or rather as you are going to need, today” he smiled at his own generosity and then stood up, walking back to his cart. “Your day off starts right now boys, I suggest you make the most of it.”

He had forgotten what simple heaven a long hot shower could be. It had taken Mirai three complete scrubbing-downs to banish the vinegar smell, and now he just stood under the stream of water, never wanting to leave it's soothing embrace.  
“Hey”  
Mirai's eyes and head snapped up as Gohan poked him in the shoulder.  
“Though being able to fall asleep in the shower is impressive, it's probably not going to end well...” Gohan joked, yawning himself. With a reluctant nod, Mirai turned off the water and headed over to dry off. A clean set of clothes later and it was almost like it had never happened...almost. Gohan yawned again loudly as he pulled his shirt over his head.  
“Honestly, I think I need a nap before anything else. We were up half the night you know” he commented with a sigh.  
“Even breakfast?”

A half hour later, having finished dressing and making a quick trip to the mess hall, Gohan and Mirai walked lazily across the open spans to the barracks, their arms around each others waists. It was definitely agreed that a nap was the next order of business. Both of them falling into Gohan's cot, Mirai snuggled against him with a content sigh, having missed his warmth next to him at night. Roane had known from the very beginning that he and Gohan were lovers, of course, but the strict, no-nonsense attitude and environment they had asked him to create didn't exactly allow for much cuddling.  
“Could you set your watch with an alarm?” he asked as Gohans' legs entwined with his, “I don't want to accidentally sleep all day out of exhaustion... I have plans for other things before this day is over.”  
“Sure, how about four hours then?” Gohan suggested, smiling.  
“Four glorious hours in your arms it is...” Mirai said sleepily, his eyes already closed. Gohan chuckled, kissing his forehead once the alarm was set. His free hand stroked over the back of Mirai's hair, coming up short, but continuing down his neck and back anyway, like he would have before.  
“I love you” he whispered, closing his eyes as well.  
“Love you, too, Gohan... Thanks for coming back for me” Mirai responded as sleep pulled him under.  
“Always.”

After the decibel overload of being woken for a week with the P.A. system and then air raid siren, the beeping of Gohan's watch seemed almost delicate in comparison. It probably wouldn't have woken either of them at all if it hadn't been right next to Mirai's ear when it went off. Blinking slowly, he groaned when he realized he was awake now.  
“Hey, Gohan” he pushed at his shoulder, “Time to get up, it's almost noon already.” An unintelligible mumble answered him.  
“What?”  
“I said, how badly do you really care about clean clothes?” Gohan asked and complained at the same time.  
“Hey, I'm the one who's supposed to be grumpy in the mornings” he joked, “Besides, it's not me, it's Roane who wants us properly 'in uniform' and all that.” With a huff, Gohan threw his arm over Mirai, pulling him close and burying his head in the crook of his neck.  
“But I was having a really good dream though” Gohan informed him, beginning to kiss at his neck, “You were there...”  
Highly displeased with the necessity of pushing him away, Mirai gave a complaining sigh as he insisted, “Laundry first.”  
“Laundry? Now? There's plenty of time left” Gohan argued, moving up to capture Mirai's lips.  
“I don't want to have to leave this bed again until morning comes, once we start that” Mirai answered gently, knowing Gohan would really prefer it that way as well. Gohan gave a large sigh, pulling back a bit so he could sit up.  
“You and your 'logic'” he said, teasing him and wagging a finger in his face, “Fine, fine...but we're putting every load in at once. There's plenty of washing machines, and I don't want to be stuck there any longer than we have to.”  
“Deal” said Mirai, sitting up and stretching as well. Keeping a close eye on Mirai's backside as they gathered up their clothes, Gohan stopped him with an arm across the doorway before they exited the room.  
“You know, maybe we really should wash all our clothes at once” he said with a wink, leaning in closer to him and running a finger under the seam of his shirt. “It really would be more efficient that way...”  
“I doubt that Roane would approve of those types of activities taking place on his washing machines” Mirai grinned back, knowing exactly how horny Gohan was at this point.  
“He specified no sex in the showers, he said nothing about any of the other buildings” Gohan argued half-seriously.  
“Hey, I consider it a small miracle that we aren't scrubbing the latrines down with a toothbrush at this point, after how bad we did on his godawful course. I really don't want to provoke him” Mirai made sure Gohan was not being actually serious.  
“Well, I'm still going to think about it...the entire time” Gohan grinned, freeing Mirai's path and holding the door open for him to pass. Mirai just chuckled and rolled his eyes as he walked by carrying his large sack of clothes. Unable to resist in his playful and horny mood, Gohan gave him a quick smack on the ass as he went by. Pausing, Mirai gave him a look that said, “Really?” over his shoulder; then morphed it into a semi-seductive wink and went back to walking away. With a groan of frustration, Gohan kicked the side of his laundry bag before picking it up and following.

When they reached the laundry room, they were surprised to see it was already in use. Mirai would have thought Roane would be set up with his own facility, but there he was sitting at a table on the far end of the room. Both a washer and dryer were running on the row next to him as he played solitaire. Seeing them come in, he nodded to them in a friendly manner, breaking the slight bit of tension. Nodding back, Gohan even raised his hand in a sort of “hi” like gesture before picking out his machines.  
Once they had them all filled and running, Mirai and Gohan reached a sort of unspoken decision that it would be kind of rude to ignore Roane's presence. Ambling over toward the end of the room that held the tables, they didn't have to wait long for Roane to address them.  
“You boys play cards?” he said once they came within a distance that wouldn't require shouting. All of those machines running at once did produce quite a bit of noise.  
“We've played poker a time or two, but not for anything serious” Mirai said, venturing closer.  
“Well, pull up a chair, I don't bite, guys” Roane smiled at their hesitation, shuffling the deck a few more times while they took seats. “Any particular version you're familiar with?” he asked them, setting the stack down in the middle of the table.  
“That time we played with Krillin and Yamcha, I think they said it was called Texas Hold'em...” Gohan offered, Mirai nodding his support.  
“Alright then, Texas Hold'em it is” Roane agreed, indicating one of them should cut the deck.  
“What are we playing for?” Mirai asked, reaching over and cutting it for him.  
“Hmm... Since money's useless on base here and we don't have any poker chips, we could just keep it friendly and play for fun. If you really want something to be on the line though, we could play for demerits” Roane suggested fairly seriously.  
“Fun's fine” they both answered at once, making Roane snort with the abruptness of his laughter. They couldn't help but crack a grin themselves, and the three of them were still chuckling a little when Roane began dealing out the cards.  
“Well, the offer stands if you boys decide you want to up the ante” Roane informed them while studying his cards. He wasn't exactly a pro at this, but he'd played his share of the game back when he was in active service. After refreshing their memories with a practice hand to run through the rules, they began to play for fun for real. Roane won the first few rounds in a row, but then Mirai began to win a few as well. While Gohan was looking at his hand for their fifth round, he was beginning to wonder how complicated it would be to come up with an equation to predict the cards.  
“I guess poker's just not my thing” he said with a sigh as he lost again, “It's a good thing we aren't playing for anything.” Keeping an eye on his watch, Gohan passed on the coming round when he saw that it was time to move their loads through the driers. Thankfully the base was originally set up to accommodate hundreds of people, so there were as many machines as they could ever want in the large room. Once everything was tumbling away, Gohan rejoined them, with a new strategy this time. Instead of trying to win, he paid almost no attention to the cards he held or that were dealt; he opted to focus on Mirai's leg underneath the table. Casually making sure of whose leg was who's as he pulled out his chair to sit down, he made certain his was brushing against Mirai's. When they had their cards, Gohan's eyes looked at them, but didn't see a thing. His awareness was centered on the feel of his foot rubbing it's way up Mirai's thigh. Out of his peripheral vision, he could see the man starting to blush, and smiled at the reaction he got.  
Fortunately, Mirai thought to himself, Gohan's foot couldn't reach all the way up from the angle he was at, or he would have had a problem. Even with just the casual rubbing over his leg it was hard enough to keep himself in check. He supposed it was a good thing Roane was here, since he'd really not had any intention of having sex in the laundry room. At least it kept Gohan from talking, or rather rubbing, his way into them doing more. With a sigh, he half heartedly won the round they were playing. Then he noticed both of them were looking at him expectantly. Blushing, he realized they had been in the middle of a conversation, and he had no idea what the last thing they'd said was.  
“Uh, what was that?” Mirai asked, trying to keep his face straight and not glare at Gohan for distracting him.  
“Well, Private Son here covered for you when I asked exactly how old you guys are, but then I asked if you had any actual combat experience and he hesitated, then looked to you, and you dropped the ball” Roane informed him. He had his arms crossed over his chest and was leaning back in his chair, with a small and somehow knowing smile on his face. “If you boys would like to 'confer' with each other before answering that, I'll understand; just know that whatever you do choose to tell me will stay strictly between us.” Now, to Roane, being the head of a massive corporation like Capsule, or the department head of an extensive program like Research and Development, didn't exactly scream 'ex mercenary', but in this day and age, you never really knew.  
Mirai hadn't really thought about having to answer that particular question, but he knew his answer was going to have to have mostly truth to it. He and Gohan may have been out of shape, but there had been several times throughout the week where they had surprised Roane with their obvious knowledge in the area of combat.  
“Well, I guess for now you could just say that we've both been thrown into more than a few of those types of situations. I grew up in a country that was at war, so when I came here, I kind of over compensated in the peacefulness and stopped keeping up with the things I had learned” Mirai admitted without really giving anything away. He knew that all the background information Bulma had fabricated for him years ago was purposefully vague, even if Roane did or already had done some digging on them. And Gohan's past was air tight, nothing to say he'd been involved in battles with aliens for the Earth's very survival since he was a small child.  
“That's fine guys, I actually didn't mean to pry, I've just come to wonder about that over the past week or so” Roane backed off politely, dealing the next hand.  
“No problem” Mirai answered, relieved he didn't continue to press the issue. Other than that embarrassing turned awkward moment, the rest of the time went by quickly. Roane was actually pretty easy to talk to, making jokes here and there, and actually listening when they were saying something. He hadn't expected him to be friendly, really, in their down time. Actually, he hadn't expected to see him at all in their down time, since this was technically his day off too. They were kind of out in the middle of nowhere though, so he guessed it did make sense for him to just stick around the base.  
When the dryer's buzzers began going off in succession, Gohan grinned widely and practically sprang from his chair to get their clothes. Mirai couldn't help but laugh a little in his head about how cute Gohan was when he got this 'eager'. With an excuse about needing to put these away before they wrinkled already formulated in his mind, Gohan hustled Mirai out the door with their clean clothes, bidding Roane farewell.  
As he nodded and waved them off, Roane still wondered about their rather obscure past. Since his own laundry was done as well, he left the building only a bit behind them, after gathering up his cards and hitting the lights. Watching them walk away, he briefly wondered what it might be like to have someone you could count on, but pushed the thought aside. Instead he began to run through the new schedule of training he would implement for the following weeks, now that he had a more accurate idea of what these guys were capable of. Even taking into account their tutelage under the Turtle Hermit, he had decided there was definitely more than met the eye with these two.

Even under his mother's watchful eye as a kid, Gohan didn't think he'd ever put his clothes away so neatly so quickly in his entire life. He even turned to help Mirai with his clothes after he was done, as the man was not moving nearly fast enough in his opinion. Mirai chuckled as Gohan practically snatched the shirt from his hands, moving with a speed he rarely displayed outside the battlefield. Once everything was in it's place he pulled Mirai into his arms, letting out a deep breath before kissing him gently.  
“I half expected to be getting ravished right now” Mirai teased as Gohan slowly kissed his way down his neck.  
“Just because I was in a hurry to get here, doesn't mean I don't plan on taking my time now that we are here” Gohan chided, biting tenderly at Mirai's exposed skin. He molded himself to his lover's body, pushing against him and moving Mirai backwards step by step until they were at the edge of his bed, kissing him all the while. Pushing him over playfully, Gohan grabbed the edge of the bed frame with a wink and pushed until it was situated directly against his own, giving them a larger area to sprawl out on. Mirai leaned up to meet him as Gohan knelt on the bed and their lips sealed together passionately.  
The first clothing to go was their boots, with Mirai grumbling about the necessity of needing your hands to undo the laces. Once those and their socks fell to the floor though, the rest of undressing became a game of how much skin could remain touching as various articles of clothing slid off them.  
“Missed you...missed this” Gohan mumbled huskily in Mirai's ear, taking full advantage of their now nude forms to rub against him sensually. Mirai moaned deliciously for him, sending a shiver down his spine with the degree of emotion it conveyed.  
“I'm sure as we get used to training again, we'll have more energy at the end of the day” Mirai whispered hopefully in Gohan's ear as he shifted his hips so their erections rubbed together. A breathless gasp escaped Gohan at the sensitiveness of the contact, and he nodded in complete agreement. He continued the slow grind of their hips for a few moments, simply savoring the feel of Mirai's nakedness beneath him. Still wanting more though, Gohan directed him with his eyes and a few practiced caresses to roll over on his stomach. He loved how after all these years, they barely even had to speak to know what each other wanted.  
This was the moment that the loss of Mirai's hair hit him the hardest, though he knew it was all for the best, and had been his decision. Kissing his way across those lovely tanned shoulders, there was nothing to sweep out of the way as he went. A shadow of regret flickered through Gohan's mind, but was quickly dismissed by the depth of his emotion, the way he cherished this man before him. Moving up to the back of Mirai's neck, he gathered a bite-full of flesh and pressed his teeth into it, just enough to leave a good mark on him, but not to draw blood. The loud exhale of Mirai's breath let Gohan know he'd hit the right note there. He could tell there'd be no opposition to the idea of him paying a little extra attention to his lover today, before they got down to business.  
Releasing his mouths' grip on Mirai's skin, Gohan sat back and began massaging his shoulders, loosening his muscles and drawing more than a few contented sighs from him. As his hands moved lower and lower, Gohan noticed Mirai's noises were becoming more and more drawn out. Changing his position, he spread Mirai's legs so that he could fit between them. With a hand on either side of his hips, he pulled his lover's lower half into a kneeling position, kneading and spreading his round, firm ass. Gohan leaned down and placed a lingering kiss over the scar at the base of his spine, relishing the low whine that filled the air around them as he did so. Either of them could be made to cum from just enough attention paid to that particular spot, but that was not his goal today.  
Moving his lips lower, Gohan made sure Mirai's cheeks were spread wide as he kissed his way down the valley between them. His tongue darted out only fleetingly to circle around his entrance before continuing downward. After making his way to the bulge of his balls below that, Gohan decided the little strip of flesh between the two had been entirely too neglected of late. He expertly scraped, skimmed and swept his lips and teeth on top of it until Mirai moaned his name into the sheets. Still warming him up though, he moved back to his love's entrance, marking a much slower and undulating circle around it this time. In keeping with his teasing rhythm, Gohan finally let his tongue lap directly over the sensitive opening, but didn't probe it yet.  
Mirai's body shifted backward toward him in frustration, causing his face to be pressed more firmly against Mirai's ass. Gohan chuckled and gave him what he wanted, slipping his tongue past the tight ring of muscle in a gentle, exploring motion. He let his saliva coat and slicken the entire surrounding area as he delved repeatedly into that hot cavern, until Mirai's hips were rocking for him and his own erection longing to take over. Finally deciding that was enough, he stopped the movement of his tongue in favor of a different kind of commotion. Bearing down on his lover's opening with a much longer appendage now, Gohan slid inside him quite easily, exacting an startled groan from Mirai at the same time.  
Giving a few slow, languid strokes in and out of him, Gohan moan himself at how incredible it was to be making love to him again after so long. Well, a week was long for them anyway... Plus this had been one of the longest weeks of their lives; it was entirely unfair, in both their opinions, and it needed to be made up for right now. Knowing his lover's body like the back of his own hand, Gohan pushed Mirai's hips down toward the bed a bit more, and leaned over him, changing the angle of his thrusts. He was rewarded by a series of low, inarticulate noises from Mirai as he penetrated him with more force and grazed over that certain special spot inside him.  
Grabbing handfuls of the sheets, Mirai hung on as Gohan's pace increased steadily, making the frame of the bed smack against the wall of the barracks in an almost competing way with his own cries. His toes and legs tingled as Gohan worked between them, grunting and groaning in a guttural way that Mirai found unbelievably hot. On the edge of his pleasurable haze, Mirai felt a finger tracing over the teeth marks at the back of his neck. Then it moved off of the indentations and began following the curve of his spine downward. When it got halfway down his back, Mirai knew he was going to cum the instant it brushed over the scar of his tail. Anticipation continued to build as it traced closer and closer to it's goal, then stopped and instead circled the bundle of nerves made sensitive by their exploits.  
“Gohan...” Mirai let himself whine and beg all at once, knowing the game Gohan played and that the pitch of voice he desired couldn't be faked. Approving of his love's plead with a breathless chuckle, Gohan flicked his fingers over the scar in rapid succession as Mirai screamed and began to cum quite forcefully beneath him. As he did, that tight heat Gohan was buried in contracted even more, sending him over the edge of an orgasm with ease. He collapsed on top of Mirai, waiting for his body to stop twitching with pleasure before he pulled out. Leaving a trail of cum over his ass when he did so, Gohan snuggled at Mirai's side, waiting for him to open his eyes so he could be the first thing he saw afterward.  
When those lidded blue flames were finally unfurled, Gohan was granted a wide smile and a sigh of approval from their owner. Before they could drift off into another round of much needed sleep though, Gohan kissed his forehead and whispered undying love for him in his ear, meaning every word sincerely. Mirai rolled to his side so they could embrace more easily, and returned the sentiment wholeheartedly. With one last kiss and set of “I love you's” they were lulled to sleep by the warmth of each others arms, content in the knowledge that no matter what happened, some things would always remain the same.


	4. Interaction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys take a field trip and learn a few new things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Notes: This Gohan x Mirai fic is set in Lord Truhan’s “Sergeant” universe.

Roane's eyes blinked open of their own accord, just as they always did, exactly one minute before his alarm went off. Rolling over and sitting up immediately, he stretched and waited for the buzzer to sound, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and yawning. Holding his hand over the button as it went off, he let it pulse exactly seven times, as if each one ingrained the 'be awake now' concept a little more into his brain. Finally switching it off, he headed over to jump in the shower. It was the most sure-fire way to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed when he had to go inspect the Privates later.  
With most of his normal routine completed, Roane walked over to the control room and absentmindedly flipped the lever that sounded Gohan and Mirai's wake-up call. He was using a new sound today. He liked to switch it up to keep them on their toes, and he had come across a perfect noise to throw at them just yesterday. It was the standard “Hull Breach” warning that most submarines and space ships were equipped with these days. The jarring noise grated over the entire base for 30 seconds, bringing a smile to Roane's lips as he pictured their startled reactions.  
That done, he went back to his room to practice for a few minutes. About a month ago, on one of their days off, he had held Gohan and Mirai to their word about showing him how to fly. He'd picked up the basics of it pretty well, though it was harder than they made it look. He didn't have much time to devote to developing the skill, with his current employment taking up so much of his time, but he did manage to get in at least a little practice every day. He had the hovering thing down, and could move from side to side, but wasn't exactly ready for the loop-d-loops and crazy acrobatics he had been shown were possible.  
Touching down on solid ground again, he grabbed his bullhorn and headed over to start the day. They didn't know it yet, but Roane had planned a little field trip for them. Deciding after a review of their contract that it was within his power to grant them permission to leave the base; he had purposefully planned this excursion for the Friday directly preceding a day off. After three months of virtual isolation out here, he thought they were all beginning to feel a bit stir crazy. He counted it as a happy coincidence that and old buddy of his had called him up a few weeks ago to offer him some work on the family's farm, so he'd been able to bargain a day of work for Gohan and Mirai out of it. Changing things up was beneficial now and then, and it would give them a chance to have some good, down-home cooking in exchange for the day's labor.

After Mirai's very polite questions about the security of their identities had been answered and dealt with, they all piled into an old Jeep that had come with the base and headed off to the farm in question. With the much less camouflaged outfits they had changed into, namely jeans and t-shirts, they didn't set off as many 'military' identity flags. Also, Mirai had obtained Roane's permission to disguise his hair, since it was a rather distinctive shade and his face quite well known in the outside world. While they were switching clothes he simply transformed into a Super Saiyan, becoming an instant blonde. They had already been informed that their job here was not so much for the physical difficulty, but to get a change of pace and to do something good for someone else. Mirai wouldn't have really pegged Roane for the altruistic type, but he had a feeling that an old army friend of his was involved. Either way, it suited him fine. Roane had indicated that afterward they were going to be allowed to spend their day off in the city nearby, which was a huge luxury by their current set of standards.  
“You boys better be on your best behavior,” Roane lectured them as he drove, “I won't have you embarrassing me on this outing, or doing any less than your absolute best at these tasks.”  
“Yes, sir” they both affirmed.  
“But at the same time, since we're kind of incognito here, you shouldn't call me 'Sir' for the rest of the day, or be afraid to act normally” Roane informed them, expecting the instructions he gave would be followed precisely. They rode the rest of the way mostly in silence, since the old Jeep's radio didn't work. There was still some nice scenery going by though, as they made their way through the countryside. Mirai held Gohan's hand and rubbed small circles into it as they waited, at least with them both sitting in the back they could have this small moment.  
When they finally reached the property, they could tell right away that this was more of a family run operation than a big corporate farm. An ancient, but well-kept farm house sprawled behind the front fence, and various out buildings littered the grounds behind it. Worn dirt roads ran between all the structures, a few of which looked in need of sprucing up. None were as bad as one of the large old barns though, it was so dilapidated that it looked ready to fall over in a strong breeze. Acre upon acre of crops stretched out around them, right up to the edge of the forest. As they got out of the car, they were 'greeted' by a trio of dogs, but they were quickly called off by the farm's owner, who limped out of the house with a cane when he saw Roane.  
The old man shook Roane's hand and clapped him on the shoulder as Roane introduced Gohan and Mirai as a couple of friends of his. The dogs sniffed at their feet while handshakes were exchanged all around, and Gohan bent down to pet the happy border collie that had taken a liking to him. It was while squatting down with the dog that he heard their day's agenda.  
“Well, I know any outfit you're part of will be set on workin' hard, but just get to as much of it as you can, seein' as how there's only the three of you” the farm's owner advised them. “There'll be a hot, home-cooked meal for you at the end of it, either way, just like we agreed. I really appreciate you takin' the time off to come out here” he finished with a nod in Roane's direction.  
“It's no problem, sir, glad to pitch in” Roane assured him.  
“Do you remember where everything is, or should I give you all the grand tour?” he questioned.  
“I'm pretty sure I've got it down, supplies in the north barn, scrap behind the old barn, and dinner at 6 o'clock sharp?” Roane grinned. He'd obviously put in time here before, Gohan noted, still scratching the dog's head. The old man chuckled and patted Roane on the shoulder again, saying he'd leave it in his capable hands then. As he began making his way back to the house, the dogs broke off to follow him, but the collie turned halfway and dropped it's front paws so he was half laying down with his tail still wagging happily in the air.  
“No, no, I can't play right now” Gohan laughed, waving him off.  
“If you're done?...” Roane began, bringing his attention back around.  
“Oh, uh, sorry, s-” Gohan stopped himself from calling Roane 'sir', “just acting normal.”  
“That's fine, but between you and me, I know what you boys are capable of, and I'll be highly displeased if everything on my list isn't done by the end of the day” he admonished them.  
“Right” Mirai nodded. “I'm guessing that would be the north barn?” he gestured, ready to get started.  
“It is indeed, let's go get that orchard harvested boys” Roane enjoined them. Since that was the most time sensitive thing on the list, Roane had them take care of it straight away. Actually, when ol' Murphy had heard it was just the couple of them, he told him over the phone not to worry about that field after all, as it was a job more fit for a couple dozen men. Roane knew that hiring the labor for that would not be cheap though, and made it their first priority. Starting up the small tractor used for pulling the fruit trays, he drove them out to the 10 acres of cherries and gave them the rundown.  
“Larger, or rather more well off farms, use rigs that shake the tree to get all the cherries off, letting them fall on tarps that are then dumped into a sorter that blows away any leaves and such. Those set-ups are not cheap though, to either buy or rent, so we're going to be using a modified version of that technique today” he explained. Indicating the stacks of plastic trays on the trailer behind the tractor, he continued, “Once all these are full, we'll go back for another load.” Grabbing a stack of four tarps off the back, he told them to spread them out under the tree, with it's trunk in the middle of where the corners would meet.  
“Now, a normal person wouldn't have the strength for this, they'd have to preposition the ladder under each branch and give them a good shaking one by one; it makes the harvest take a long time when done by hand. But I'm counting on you to be able to give the tree a good shaking right at the trunk, without damaging it of course, and get this thing done within a couple hours” Roane motioned for Mirai to step up. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Mirai wrapped his hands around the tree, pushing and pulling on it gently at first, to get an idea for the woods' tolerance. Feeling like he had a fairly good reading on it, he shook the tree quickly, making it seem as if the whole thing vibrated. A rain of cherries fell on him immediately, though he kept shaking for a good 10 seconds, just to make sure. Roane walked around the edge of the tree, looking to see if there were any clumps still hanging on, but found only one small section on an outlying branch.  
“Good work. After you do that, always check to see if there's any clingers. You have my permission to fly, in fact I insist on it, since the speed it provides you will be the only way you can get this whole orchard done in the time frame I'm looking for.” As Roane spoke, Mirai flew up to the branch and gave it another small shake, with it finally releasing it's payload.  
“So, here's how I want you to work this. You each will have your own row of trees. After you've spread out your tarps and done the shaking, you'll probably have to pick out any twigs or sticks by hand, but then the leaves you should be able to blow away all at once with that handy 'ki' stuff you showed me before. Also, since you can fly, picking up the tarps and dumping them into a line of waiting trays should present no logistical problems for you. I will be following behind you, moving the trays onto the trailer while you go on to the next set of trees. Any questions?” Roane asked, though he clearly expected none.  
“No, that's really well thought out” Gohan replied, moving to stake out the neighboring row while Mirai finished with his tarps. “There is one thing though,” he couldn't help himself, “Are you sure you'll be able to keep up with us?” Roane got in his face with a slightly aggressive posture, only a small smile giving away that he was actually pleased with Gohan's competitive attitude.  
“I am not one to balk at a hard days work, Private, but if you really get that far ahead, feel free to come back when you've finished the whole acreage and help load trays too” he challenged him. The quicker it was all done the better, in his mind. Gohan grinned and looked over to catch Mirai's eye, seeing the mischievous twinkle in them as well.  
“Deal” he said with a nod. “Hey Mirai, race you to the end of this row?”  
“Sure, though I've got a whole tree's head start on you, I don't know if that's really fair” Mirai accepted his proposal with a teasing lilt to his voice.  
“Are you kidding? You're going to need it” Gohan laughed, arranging his tarps. He stopped and waited until he and Mirai were in the same position on their respective trees.  
“On your mark...get set...go!” he counted down. From Roane's perspective, what seemed to be happening was that a very large, yet controlled, wind swept through the two rows. Trays of cherries just seemed to pop up in a neat line every few seconds in front of the next tree down the row, with leaves and small twigs continually swirling in the air around them. Roane realized his mouth was slightly open when a stray piece of leaf flew into it, making him grimace and spit. All of a sudden, he felt a hand on is shoulder, and spun around. Gohan was standing there, grinning like the cat that got the canary, as Roane felt Mirai's hand on his other shoulder only a few seconds after that.  
“I told you I'm faster” Gohan prodded Mirai as they dropped their hands, having used him as an effective goal line. Roane stared at them for half a second, then regained his composure.  
“Alright, new plan” he said, going over and starting up the tractor, “Load these that you just did onto the trailer, and let's see if you boys can still go that fast on the next set of rows while aiming for a moving target.” For the rest of the harvesting, Roane drove the tractor up the row at the same time they worked, quickly filling the trailer. It turned out the longest part of the process was driving back to the barn for a new set of trays, as the tractor could only go so fast. When they drove in the last load, Roane glanced at his watch.  
“An hour and fifteen minutes?” he practically exclaimed, shaking his head. “We spent a lot of that driving too...” he mused, not for the first time wondering who the heck Gohan and Mirai really were. It wasn't his place to ask those kinds of questions though, his job was to keep them on track.  
“I need to point out to ol' Murphy that he needs to call up a packing shed to come pick these up. You two go back to the north barn and load up that flatbed truck behind it with fence posts.”  
“Just out of curiosity, what are you going to say when he asks how we got this done so quickly?” Mirai wondered. Roane grinned and held out his arms in an 'I've nothing to hide' gesture, “No one saw anything, there's nothing to say an entire battalion wasn't out here shaking these trees” Roane said innocently. He wouldn't normally stretch the truth like that, well, lie, in this case, but it was a small one to protect them while they did as much good as possible for this family.

While Roane trotted off to do that, Mirai and Gohan made a b-line for the barn, still full of energy after having only worked up a light sweat in the trees. Moving that fast in normal gravity was a piece of cake for them, plus they had a good time with their own little side bets on who could finish how much first. Mirai currently owed Gohan two back rubs and chocolate cake tomorrow on their day off, while Gohan owed Mirai a foot massage and a bottle of wine. It was looking to be a pretty good day, tomorrow was...  
They had the truck loaded up with the thick posts in no time, in fact more quickly than it took Roane to make it back. Noticing there wasn't exactly anyone else around, Gohan nonchalantly pushed Mirai up against the side of the barn, giving him a wide grin as he asked, “So we're supposed to 'act normally', right?”  
“Gohan...” Mirai chided, as if he shouldn't have been surprised. Gohan stole a kiss anyway. Several in fact, until he felt Roane's ki approaching them again. “Time to build a fence” he whispered seductively in his lover's ear before pulling away.  
“You always know just what to say to make my heart race” Mirai chuckled somewhat sarcastically, pushing away from the barn.  
“Well, I do know you better than anyone else” Gohan got in one last tease before Roane appeared around the corner.  
“Alright boys, hop in the cab and let's get going, this fence won't build itself” he commanded, heading directly for the truck. If he had any notion of what they'd been doing just before he appeared, he didn't make a point of it.  
“The fence between this farm and the neighboring one is in bad shape, and as I'm sure you could tell, it's owner isn't exactly in the kind of health that is conducive to putting up fences. The fence that runs along the road is fairly new, as it was just replaced a few years ago. But the one on the west side of the farm is a cattle fence, less decorative, more functional, and rather labor intensive” he described their upcoming task to them as they drove. When they arrived at their destination, the fence's disrepair was obvious. Lines of barbed wire sagged and in some places left wide gaps. Almost all of the poles leaned one way or another, and their wood looked to be decaying pretty rapidly at this point. Gohan looked from side to side, up and down it's length, scanning the area for any ki signatures that would indicate someone was nearby at the same time.  
“Uh, they don't expect any of this to be salvageable, do they?” he asked, scratching his head.  
“No, the old stakes will be burned and the rusty old wire melted down and recycled, eventually. Alright, get this truck unloaded boys. Then Mirai, you can start tearing the current fence down while Gohan and I go back for another load of stakes. Once all the supplies are moved over, I'll have you two start putting in the new one” Roane explained as they piled the new posts on the ground.  
After the two of them had taken off in the truck again, Mirai glanced around just as Gohan had, feeling out if there were any surrounding ki's before taking a hold of the barbed wire. As a Super Saiyan, the jutting metal couldn't even come close to piercing his skin, so he didn't bother with gloves. Gathering all the lines of it at once, he began ripping them off the posts with a swish of his arm. He discovered that if he tried to go too fast, the posts that weren't as rotted held onto the wire more firmly, and starting to rip out of the ground. At one point, he came across a section that was so rusted the wire snapped in half when he pulled, though he'd been using the same strength as on the previous sections. He finally did get it all dislodged though, rolling it into a huge ball and then flying it back to the starting point with it above his head.  
Roane and Gohan were just about to drive away from unloading the second batch of stakes when they saw him approaching.  
“Here, throw that on the back, we'll take it to the scrap heap on our way to get the last of the posts” Roane indicated. While they were gone, Mirai found that removing the rotten wood was no less delicate a process than removing the wire had been. If he pulled too hard, the end of it was liable to break off in the ground. It actually was a task made harder by being in his transformed state, but he figured the practice in control was certainly worth something. When he was a little over halfway done, Gohan flew up beside him, beginning to help with the tear down.  
Right when Mirai went to get a grip on the last piece, he felt Gohan come up behind him, pressing at his back and pinning him to the wooden post.  
“Seriously?” he asked in mock indignation as Gohan began kissing at his neck.  
“What?” Gohan feigned innocence as he switched to kissing the other side.  
“You're incorrigible, that's what” Mirai retorted, closing his eyes with a sigh, “Haven't you learned any self control these past few months?” he joked, not moving to escape though.  
“Oh, and I suppose you'd rather have a perfectly in-control lover” Gohan's low voice teased back at a whisper, “One who never gives in to the moment, who's always strict with you... You'd probably rather date Roane than me.” Mirai laughed, turning to face Gohan and wrap his arms around his neck.  
“On the count of three, drop to your knees and give me a blow job, Private” Gohan frowned, doing his best impersonation of their commander. Mirai groaned, rolling his eyes to emphasize how ridiculous Gohan was being.  
“As if. You know I like being spontaneous” he reminded him, “I just think we should be a little more on task at the moment.”  
“But no one else is around... I thought we already established that if you want me to stay on track, I need constant supervision” Gohan continued to joke, but released Mirai so he could finish with the post.  
“Well, maybe I should call Roane over here to keep an eye on you then” Mirai suggested with a grin, bending over more than necessary to renew his grip. Watching Mirai's ass closely, Gohan shook his head and put his hands on his hips.  
“I knew you liked him better than me.”  
“I don't know, the way you keep accusing me of being after him, it's almost like you're trying to cover up something yourself” Mirai turned the tables on him, throwing down the now freed post. Crossing his arms over his chest as he faced him, Mirai also raised a highly accusing eyebrow. Neither could hold their stance for long though, before bursting into laughter. Once they had died down to a lingering chuckle, Gohan suggested they start carrying the old timber over, since it would take hardly any time flying. Each gathering up an armful, they quickly flew back to the truck, which Roane had already gotten started on filling. Though he was nowhere near as fast as them, he did remarkably well for a human. Once they'd taken all the loads of scrap in, it was finally time to start on putting up the new fence.  
With the track of the old one to follow, there was no worry about keeping the fence itself headed in a straight line, but Roane did stop to eyeball the posts and make sure they weren't leaning as they went. Mirai stood off to the side, next to one of the piles of new posts, and threw them to Gohan. Gohan used a miniscule ki blast to create a hole for the post, and then shoved it into the ground. As soon as Roane gave the 'ok' on it being positioned to his satisfaction, Gohan moved back and raised his arms to catch the next post. When they first started, they had tried both planting posts at the same time, but Roane didn't feel he was getting enough of a chance to properly inspect their work. This way may have technically been slower, but it was still light-years ahead of getting out a post hole digger. It was an easy thing for Gohan to keep each ki burst the same, making all the holes identical.  
Finally they finished marking off the entire edge of the property with the new wood. Compared to what had been there before, it practically glowed. After they'd gotten the rolls of new barbed wire off the truck, Roane came over to them with a dangerous looking industrial staple gun.  
“These staples are specifically made to dig into and hold onto wood. Start off your strand by wrapping it around the post a few times, then tie it off, like so” Roane demonstrated, “That will hold it in place while you attach it to the next post. You want the staples to be loose over the wire, so we can properly tension it afterward. Start with the bottom row and work your way up, we should have 8 to 10 lines overall” he finished instructing them. They were able to get it all strung up pretty quickly, with Gohan unraveling the wire while flying, and Mirai coming in behind him and stapling. The fresh metal practically glistened in the sun when the fence was finished, the bright wood almost making the pasture seem cleaner and refreshing somehow.  
Mirai really enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment it gave him, seeing the whole thing put together, and knowing they had done that. He rarely (well, never, actually...) got this kind of satisfaction out of reading reports and signing contracts.  
“I like this. Feeling like we really accomplished something good” he said out loud as he gazed over it. Roane looked over at him, pleasantly surprised to hear the idea conveyed in that statement, especially from someone who obviously came from such an upscale kind of life.  
“That's three miles of fence you boys took down and then put up in the span of a couple hours. No harm in being proud of your work, especially when it's been done well” he complimented them. “Let's stop for lunch before we head to the next task, I'm sure you guys are probably getting hungry by now.” Even though this wasn't nearly as much of a workout as Roane normally gave them, Gohan and Mirai weren't about to indicate they'd wait for food if they didn't have to.

Lunch on the farm was a pile of thick sandwiches, mounds of potato salad, and a couple gallons of iced tea. As plentiful as they were sure it seemed to ol' Murphy and his wife, it wouldn't have done much against a Saiyan's appetite if they'd really been working hard. Fortunately it would be enough to get by, and they could eat as much as they wanted once they got into town later. It wouldn't do to eat them out of house and home anyway, if they were to truly sate themselves at two different meals.  
That afternoon's work was scheduled to be on the other side of the property, where the land they owned ran over and into the forest. There was a definite line where the current fields cut into it, and that was where the expansion was set to take place. A twenty acre parcel had already been outlined, though the amount of land they owned stretched even farther than that. The clearing of this plot was just to be able to add onto the adjacent crop for next year. The land was pretty free of underbrush, being at the edge of the woods, but it was scattered with trees that needed to go.  
“Once we've got them all cut down” Roane said, gesturing to the trees, “we'll take the logs over behind the farmhouse to be cut up for firewood later. If we get this field ready to go quickly enough, we can spend the rest of the time until dinner on that.” He handed each of them an ax as he spoke. Gohan looked at the handle and blade of the implement, speaking up once Roane was done.  
“There's a faster way” he offered, setting the ax down. Flying up to the middle of the nearest tree, he gripped it around the middle and pulled it straight out of the ground, like it was nothing.  
“This way we don't have to come back and remove the stump” he added, setting it down to the side of them.  
“Yeah, but they'll probably question how the hell we got them out of the ground in one piece” Mirai said. He stepped over to the log and used a slice of ki to sever the root from the rest of the trunk.  
“You might as well clean off the branches while you're at it, we can't stack them like that very well anyway” Roane gave them the go ahead on their new plan, and in no time they had all the trees worth making into firewood prepped and ready to go. Again, the longest part of it was ferrying the logs over to the farm house, since they couldn't fly them to the chopping block. They discarded the stumps on their way, though they left them all in one big pile in the scrap heap, since technically they could still be burned for fuel later if needed. Once they reached the wood shed, they pretended to need one of them on each end of the log to lift it, just in case anyone was watching. I reality, the trees were far too heavy for only two normal people to lift, but at least it didn't draw as much attention as a single person lifting the whole thing.  
Gohan glanced around casually as they unloaded, checking to see if anyone was taking note of them, but the only one watching was the dog from earlier. He grinned to see it was still following him around after having been stuck a few tidbits under the lunch table. It continued to trot after them as they made their way back to the field as well. Thankfully, being a farm dog, he knew better than to get in their way while working.   
Instead of firing up the tractor when they got back, Gohan and Mirai decided to take this opportunity to work on their ki control some more. Cutting long, careful lines into the soil, they sent the burst of ki at each other so slowly it could hardly even be called a blast. Mirai caught the glowing sphere and sent it back to Gohan, ripping up layer after layer of soil as they walked along. It wasn't a particularly draining exercise, but did require a good amount of concentration to have the ki ball only tear up a specific amount of earth in its wake. By the time all 20 acres were 'plowed' in this way, Mirai was sporting a visible sheen of sweat. The afternoon was a fairly warm one on top of it too.  
Knowing how Gohan was usually effected by seeing him in this state, he prepared himself to fend off a few advances, knowing Roane was just down the field from them. Technically, from this distance, he couldn't see either of them, but felt them instead, and knew Gohan was heading his way. Mirai was marking off the section of dirt that would be dug up to form an irrigation canal in a moment, when his lover arrived.  
Glancing over, he only intended on giving him a friendly smile and nod so they would stay on track, then suggesting they start the ditch. That was until he saw the bastard was walking around covered in just as much glistening sweat as he was, but had somehow thought it appropriate to remove his shirt. It was physically impossible for Mirai to break his gaze away from the chiseled perfection before him. He watched a bead of sweat reach it's tension point and break away from the hollow of Gohan's neck, tracing a quick line between broad pecs, slipping down over toned and muscular abs, only to disappear into the cloth of his pants below that.  
Gohan grinned as Mirai's finger reached out and traced a line down his chest, his lover not even having met his eyes yet in his transfixed state. He felt the single finger hook itself into his waistband and grinned even wider, waiting for Mirai to eventually look up on his own. While the finger continued to rest in between Gohan and his pants, Mirai's other hand made the opposite motion, starting at his waist and running up over his chest.  
“What the hell do you two think you're doing?” Roane's voice was a lot closer than his ki had seemed a moment ago. Mirai jumped back from Gohan's chest, at first going straight into a salute (as did Gohan), but then remembering they weren't supposed to do that right now, he lowered his hand, not really sure what to do.  
“Uh, sorry, I, uh.... sorry” Mirai sputtered, unsure what to call him either, since he wasn't 'sir' right now, and Roane might think addressing him by his first name while in trouble was disrespectful.  
“Can you two not keep it in your pants for 5 minutes when no one else is around?” he asked sort of mildly angry and disbelievingly. At least he wasn't yelling it at the top of his lungs like usual.  
“I told you to 'act' normal” Roane informed them, using his hands to make little quotation marks in the air, “not actually 'be' normal” he frowned. Mirai and Gohan weren't really sure what to say to that, though the pinkish tinge to Mirai's cheeks seemed to arise almost as if in response.  
“It won't happen again” Mirai vocalized, watching Roane's reactions carefully. Their commander sighed, seeming to rub his temple, but then he turned it into a motion that wiped his forehead of sweat.  
“Alright boys, I'll make you a deal. Since I know we're in kind of a gray area here, I'm going to make a gesture of goodwill. If you can manage to keep from molesting each other for the rest of the afternoon, then when we get into town later, I'll buy you both a drink and then let you molest each other as much as you want for the rest of the night, no interruptions. I know we won't officially be on 'down' time until sunrise, but you've done a good job here today, and you deserve a bit of a reward. Does that sound like a bet you're willing to make?” Roane smirked at them, knowing full well what their answer would be.  
“Yes, we'll take it” Mirai accepted for both of them, rather eagerly.  
“Oh, I don't know babe, you have been rather touchy-feely today” Gohan teased him, “What happens if we lose?” he asked Roane. Crossing his arms over his chest, Roane had his drill instructor voice back on when he answered.   
“Well then your asses are still mine until sunrise” he said almost condescendingly, as if they should have known better. Gohan swallowed hard, side-stepping another foot or so away from Mirai, just to be on the safe side. Roane rolled his eyes.  
“Get started on that irrigation canal, you've still got a mountain of firewood to chop after this” he chided, though the sting in his voice had lessened somewhat.  
Just the thought of getting to have this night to themselves was enough to keep even Gohan focused as they put in the series of ditches that would allow water to flow to the eventual crop. Earlier, Roane had only indicated they would get tomorrow off in the city. Both of them had fully expected to be doing push ups or hand stands or something well into the night, or at varying times of the night, as Roane seemed to love that element of surprise. This was certainly a welcome development, and worth a little extra self control for the next few hours.  
Stopping only to hydrate once the field was done and ready, they all headed over to the pile of logs they'd stacked up previously. Sawing them into wood stove sized lengths would have been much easier using their ki, but this close to the house, they didn't want to risk it. Besides, this was years worth of wood, and even if they didn't get it all cut right now, Roane figured at the rate they were going there would definitely be enough done for the upcoming cold season. Mirai and Gohan's strength made short work of the logs, even with a conventional two man saw. Soon all the tree trunks had been reduced to stumps under the push and pull of them at the blade.  
Roane started splitting the stumps into actual firewood while they were still sawing, making an impressive on it. Since the farmer only had two axes though, he handed his over to Gohan once they had finished with the trees, knowing it would do far more damage in his hands.   
“Have you ever split wood before?” Gohan grinned at Mirai, knowing this was definitely outside his job description. Gohan had grown up with the chore all his life, especially when his dad was gone. He'd developed a slightly different method than just using an ax though, once he'd learned about ki as a child. Since that was not really an option here, as they were within the sight of the farmhouse, it put him and Mirai on almost even terms.  
“What's that? You sound like you want to owe me another bottle of wine, with that tone in your voice” Mirai joked, issuing the challenge.  
“I don't know, you may end up owing me a pie instead, city boy” Gohan's eyes flashed with playfulness as he teased his lover.  
“Oh, is that how you want to play? Fine then, you're on” Mirai gave him a purposefully exaggerated frown. “Whoever can split the most wood in a half hour wins” he set forth.  
“Hold on though, some pieces are going to be bigger than others, how are you going to measure who chopped 'more'?” Gohan questioned him scientifically, wondering if he knew the answer. Mirai rolled his eyes at Gohan's never ending attention to detail, and Roane spoke up when he saw it.  
“Chopped wood is measured in cords. You each do as much as you can, and at the end of the half hour, stack it up and then I'll measure who has the most” he volunteered to referee their little bet.  
“Sounds go to me” Gohan nodded, noting Roane's knowledge extended beyond the battlefield a fair way, considering all he'd demonstrated today. It was his guess the man had worked on this farm or some other quite a few times over the years, though they'd never really spoken of their personal lives in detail. Roane readied his watch to time them, and they both positioned their first logs for his signal.  
“All right boys... On the count of three-” Roane was cut off by Mirai bursting into a laughter he clearly couldn't control. He dropped his ax and was covering his mouth with his hand, bent in half as a fit of hysterics consumed him. Gohan was still holding his ax in mid swing, but was blushing furiously, starting to chuckle himself as Mirai's contagious laughter spread to him. Obviously he knew what it was that had Mirai in such a state all of a sudden, but when Roane raised an eyebrow at him questioningly, he shook his head and waved him off as if he didn't want to know. After an internal count of ten, Roane turned to him with his arms crossed over his chest.  
“Are we going to be continuing your little competition or not?” he looked down at him like Mirai had lost his mind.  
“Bet's off” Mirai shook his head after a series of deep, calming breaths. “I know we're still doing the firewood,” a stray giggle escaped him, “but I can't, can't race like this” he said, looking to Gohan imploringly. Gohan nodded, letting him off the hook for their wager, only because Mirai's current condition was mostly his fault.  
“How about we'll just see how much we can get done in the first half hour, then try and top it in the next one?” Gohan offered, knowing Roane still expected them to be giving it their all. Mirai agreed to that readily, though he shot Gohan a look behind Roane's back that said he would both be thanked and paid back properly for this later. It was the kind of look that to a saiyan promised some amazing sex would follow said paying back. Gohan chuckled quietly to himself over that, not wanting to set Mirai off again as they finally got down to work.  
Though an occasional giggle plagued him here and there during the first session, Mirai had himself pretty much back under control for the second one. It turned out he was even mildly grateful their bet had been called off, because Gohan would have beat him hands down. The man was fast, swinging the ax with precision and confidence, not pausing at all in between logs. Mirai would have looked to be keeping up with him by human standards, but personally, he could tell Gohan was about 2 or 3 logs ahead of him. When their final round before dinner was said and done, Mirai's guess was proven right. Gohan's stack ended up evening out his last cord, while Mirai's was just a bit short.  
“Too bad about that pie...” Gohan sighed, staring at the two piles.  
“You really wanted me to take my time to make you a pie on our day off?” Mirai said sarcastically to him, wiping his brow.  
“I didn't say you had to make it, you could have just bought me one” Gohan corrected him with a grin.  
“Oh, whatever, you say that now” Mirai joked.  
“Boys! Supper's ready in a half an hour, y'all better come in and get washed up now!” ol' Murphy's wife shouted from the back porch. Roane waved, letting her know they'd heard her.  
“Let's go, we can take turns getting cleaned up in the guest bedroom. The Missus won't allow a bunch of filthy, unwashed men at her dining room table” Roane grinned, shaking his head. Since they'd brought everything they'd need for the weekend with them in a couple of capsules, and they were all used to taking 5 minute showers, there was actually plenty of time for them to all be washed and combed and ready to eat at 6 o'clock sharp. Mirai did have to power down to shower though, since the water kept trying to roll away from him. He figured there was a very small chance of being 'discovered' in there anyway. It was really only getting caught in the act of some amazing feat of strength or speed that they watched out for. Mirai was the last to shower, so Roane and Gohan were already waiting for him outside the guest room, sniffing the air hungrily.  
“It's about time” Gohan's stomach grumbled, “I'm starving.”  
“Yeah, well just remember we'll eat again in town, don't go demolishing their whole kitchen” Mirai wagged a finger at him as if he was already guilty. Roane frowned at him. A real frown, not a messing around frown.  
“What kind of hair dye was that?” he asked, finding it odd that whatever he'd used this morning had washed out so completely in only a few minutes.  
Oh shit... He'd forgot to transform back when he got out of the shower.  
“Uh, you know what? I'll have to explain this later” Mirai said, ducking back into the room as he heard steps coming toward them from around the corner of the hall.  
“Well boys... Where's your other buddy? There's no being tardy to meals in this house” ol' Murphy got ready to herd them into the dining room. Mirai stepped right back out of the door, now a perfect spiky blonde again. The best explanation he could think of for his instantaneous change in hair color was only possibly going to fly with Roane, but definitely not with these strangers.  
“All ready to go, sir” Mirai nodded to the old man respectfully, and to Roane deferentially, really hoping he'd go along without questions until they were alone again. Roane nodded back, following ol' Murphy as he proceeded down the hall, not saying a word on anyone's hair color, thankfully. While their backs were turned, Gohan silently gave Mirai a fake slap upside the head, and Mirai mouthed to him “I forgot” with his hands raised in a mock defensiveness. As he turned the corner at the end of the hall, Roane caught some of their skit out of the corner of his eye.  
“You coming boys? Remember what ol' Murphy just said about being late for dinner” he said dryly, not liking that they seemed to be messing around.  
“Sorry, right, we're coming” they jogged down the hall to catch up with him. No more was said as they went in and took their seats, both of them eying the surprisingly fancy dining room. Though the tableware was formal, the food piled high on it was everything you could expect from a good down-home meal. Fried chicken and slabs of pork, mashed potatoes and corn on the cob, noodle casserole and stuffing, not to mention fresh baked bread and a three-bean salad, was spread out before them. Gohan was literally drooling, and wiped at the corner of his mouth as discreetly as he could. They waited for everyone else to get their plate's filled first, and then neither he nor Mirai stopped eating until the table was cleaned of food. It was amazingly good, just nowhere near enough. Gohan figured it would at least hold him over for the ride into town though.  
Thanking their hosts, who managed to hide their shock at how much they ate fairly well, they climbed back into the Jeep and waited for Roane, who had gotten pulled into a hug by the “Missus”. As he was released, ol' Murphy clapped him on the back and was obviously thanking him one more time. For some reason both Gohan and Mirai looked away as Roane turned from the porch and headed to the car, as if they'd been looking at a private moment on accident. The first words out of Roane's mouth once he shut the Jeep's door let them know he hadn't forgotten about Mirai's little stunt earlier though.  
“So, is it 'later' enough yet to explain your little instant blonde trick?” he said casually while backing out of the driveway. Mirai had decided the easiest thing at this point would be to explain it away as some sort of ki ability, since it was kind of related to that, and just stress that it was a by-product of the particular reaction his body had to the technique...etc, etc.  
“You mean, it's genetic” Roane connected a few more dots than Mirai really wanted him to, but it was too late to re-phrase anything now.  
“Yeah, sort of...basically” he admitted “No one really knows that much about it, since it hasn't been studied scientifically or anything.” That sounded reasonable for an obscure ki channeling side effect, and would hopefully end the conversation. Roane nodded, mostly satisfied with that explanation and not really questioning it anymore.

It took a good two hours to get to the city, which wasn't a metropolis, but was thankfully large enough to have it's own airport and at least a couple different hotels and bars to choose from. Roane was a man of his word, and since they'd kept their hands off each other, even while showering and changing, he pulled into the parking lot of a rather 'art nouveau' looking bar. It seemed right at home in the up-scale section of town, right across from a few higher end hotels and a mall, but not like the kind of atmosphere they would have pegged Roane with liking.  
“This looks like a pretty expensive place, I wouldn't have thought you had that kind of taste, I mean, from what we saw before” Gohan trailed off, not realizing when he started that sentence that Roane might be offended by the assumption.  
“I don't” Roane snorted, as if the idea was a little ridiculous, “but this is the only gay bar in town” he said over his shoulder as he gave his ID to the man checking the door.  
“Oh” Gohan said mostly to himself as he pulled out his wallet. He and Mirai exchanged a look.  
“You didn't have to do that” Gohan informed him once they all got inside. It was still early for the partying scene to be in full swing, so the place wasn't very crowded yet, even though it was Friday.  
“Oh really?” Roane said with a chuckle, dismissing Gohan's line of reasoning, “Let's get a seat while there's still some tables open, unless you'd like the bar?” he indicated it to the left.  
“A table's fine” Mirai said, elbowing Gohan in the side to tell him to just let it go. While Roane went to go get them their drinks, Mirai leaned over to Gohan, “It's actually a nice gesture, and besides, it's not like he's uncomfortable with it” he pointed out. That was true, Gohan reminded himself as well that the guy caught them making out at least once a week... Not 'on the clock' of course, or they'd have been in trouble, but he'd known up front exactly what kind of 'partners' they were, and still took the job. In fact, as Gohan watched him getting their drinks at the bar, a guy was hitting on him as they spoke, and he was handling it quite well.  
When Roane finally returned, carrying the three glasses carefully, Gohan decided to bring up something he'd seen back at the farm, trying to make conversation. After thanking him for the drink, he asked him about a photo that had been hanging in the dining room when they ate. It looked pretty similar to one he'd seen in Roane's apartment when they were first looking into him; enough so that he wondered if it was the same one. Roane leaned back from the table and just looked at Gohan for a moment, as if he was assessing him. The decision he came to must have involved him being deemed trustworthy, because even though he looked away from them, he started to answer the question.  
“Allen. Al Murphy, their son, was the 'natural' blonde in the photo with us” Roane looked back to them, glancing to Mirai's hair as he said 'natural'. “It's the same picture” he confirmed. His behavior seemed a tad off, but it was the first time they'd ever really talked about something personal like that, so Gohan thought it would be ok to push just a little bit further, though he wasn't trying to grill the man, just find out a little bit more about him.  
“You said 'was', do you mind if I ask what happened to him?”  
Roane looked at him as if he was both expecting and not expecting him to say that. Actually, the look on his face was kind of hard to read.  
“Uh, he died” Roane said as if Gohan should have known that, like it was common knowledge. Mirai casually kicked Gohan's leg under the table, which of course Roane noticed, actually making him chuckle.  
“It's war, people die” he sighed. “We were in basic together, got to be pretty good friends, were lucky enough to get stationed on our first tour with the same company... He never came back from his second tour though, and I did” Roane shrugged. “It's not something either of us had any control over. I spent a lot of leaves on his family's farm, since I didn't really have anywhere to be, I'd go help him out” Roane explained and finished off his drink. “I'm sure you know” he gestured to Mirai, “having been around war, sometimes you just lose people.”  
Mirai nodded, the resigned tone in Roane's voice striking him as a bit jaded even.  
“Have either of you?” he turned the 'sharing' tables back to them, “Ever lost someone?” Now, Gohan had seen plenty of people die in his lifetime, but they were usually brought back again at some point, so he wasn't really sure he should speak up. Mirai on the other hand, was very still beside him while he tried to think of how to answer that question. Gohan didn't know if he should rub his back or just let him be, as his particular touch right now might only make it more difficult for him.  
“I'm sorry” Roane got Mirai's attention away from staring at the glass in front of him, “I wasn't trying to get you down by asking that. I mean, Al and I weren't lovers or anything, it doesn't 'haunt' me... I didn't think about what you might have gone through yourself before I said that” he apologized, picking up on the emotion that Mirai was trying to hide.  
“It's ok... No, really” Mirai took a deep breath and squeezed Gohan's hand, waving off both his and Roane's concern. “It was a long time ago, and we weren't lovers either” Mirai smiled at Gohan, who already knew all of this. “Maybe we could just talk about something besides war and dying tonight...or training either, since it is our day off” Mirai grinned. When Roane saw Gohan relax again, he figured Mirai really was ok.  
“So, you want to talk about something 'happy'?” Roane stroked his chin as if it took a great deal of effort to think those thoughts. “Yeah...I got nothing” he joked, shaking his head as if it couldn't be helped. Both Mirai and Gohan grinned at that. Gohan's grin was wider though.  
“Well I'm getting laid tonight, so I could spare you a couple of 'happy thoughts'... But Mirai might be upset with me later” Gohan shrugged as if to add an 'oh well' to the end of that, grinning from ear to ear as he watched Mirai's reaction.  
“Oh my god, do not make me come over there” he half joked, half threatened; scowling at him. Then he began laughing as he couldn't help remembering the wood cutting incident. Roane just shook his head at their antics, glad the mood of the evening hadn't been accidentally ruined.  
“I'm going to get another drink, you boys ready for another round yet?” he asked them as he stood.  
“Sure” Gohan laughed, pretending he needed to keep a watch on Mirai out of the corner of his eye, “I think I'll be safe if left alone with him for a little while.” Mirai punched him in the arm without even looking. As Roane walked away, Gohan pulled Mirai in close to him, kissing him tenderly in their instructor's absence. The upcoming prospect of their two nights together, more than the alcohol, was making him a little giddy, and he slipped his tongue into Mirai's mouth for what was supposed to be a quick 'stolen' kiss. As he waited at the bar, Roane happened to glance back at their table and see them basically making out with not a care in the world. He rolled is eyes and sighed, drawing the attention of the guy who'd been hitting on him earlier once again. He grinned and decided to have his drink there at the bar while he waited for them to finish with that...  
Twenty minutes later, he could see they were still oblivious to what was going on around them, and decided they all had better things to do. Picking up the drinks he'd ordered them earlier, he walked over set them down on the table a bit more loudly than necessary. And draw their attention it did.  
“These were on me too, boys... No, don't worry about it, as you were” he winked and walked back away. Neither of them were exactly sure how long they'd been making out without realizing it, but figured it was enough to be noticeable, especially since he'd used the word 'were'.  
“Let's finish these up then and head across the street” Gohan whispered in Mirai's ear.  
“That's a good plan” Mirai stroked Gohan's cheek. He did feel a little bad though, that they'd sort of scared Roane off, even though he'd been cool about it.  
“We should apologize to him, next time we see him” Mirai said, moving to work on his drink. “He was just trying to be friendly and we almost completely ignored him.” It was then that Gohan spotted a red flame of hair, still at the bar.  
“Actually, he's still here...” he informed him, a little puzzled, “I thought he'd meant he was leaving too.” As they both watched, a rather good looking guy leaned over and whispered something in Roane's ear. When Roane turned to him, he was obviously laughing, though they couldn't hear what was being said from this far away and with all the noise of the bar. They were both about to chalk the whole thing up to 'odd', until Roane and that guy, the same one who had been hitting on him earlier, now that Gohan thought about it, got up together. Got up together, and he put his arm around Roane's waist as they headed for the door. Gohan was fairly certain his mouth was hanging open from the look on Roane's face as he glanced at their table on his way out. With a wink at them, Roane slipped his hand into the guys' back pocket and then walked out the door.  
“Did he?”  
“Was that?”  
“When he said he and Al weren't, I thought...”  
“I guess he wasn't just being considerate...”  
They both sat in stunned silence for a minute.  
“No wonder he wanted to get rid of us early” Gohan smirked.


	5. The Motions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys are reminded that not all weakness is physical.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Notes: This Gohan x Mirai fic is set in Lord Truhan’s “Sergeant” universe.

After their initial go in the gravity room, to see where the limit of their tolerance was, Roane had disabled the screen that showed them how much gravity they were working under. Apparently it was all part of his plan for enhancing their “situational awareness”, but honestly, Gohan thought he just enjoyed getting the drop on them. Sometimes literally. Without the flashing screen, there was no way to tell a change in gravity was coming up. Their reflexes were becoming honed to catching the extra weight, or pushing with greater force at a moments notice, since they never knew when it might hit.  
Roane still didn't think it was enough though, and was stationing them in the second chamber of the gravity room for what he called “Enhanced Combat Maneuvers” today. His normal routine had become pushing them as hard as possible under the most gravity they could handle each morning, until they were ready to collapse. Then they'd spend the rest of the day doing things around the base that even though they seemed mundane, were incredibly taxing on their tired bodies at that point. That way they had discipline, but with a certain amount of unpredictability thrown in too. They never knew if they'd be running around the base's perimeter for the rest of the day, or cleaning the mess hall, or some combination thereof.  
These little surprise sessions were always memorable as well... Gohan groaned internally, remembering the first obstacle course, but knew better than to let any such emotion show on his face. Roane was still watching them, even if he wasn't in the room.  
“Today's exercise will be aerial. The more hits you take, the more time you get to spend digging holes this afternoon” Roane's voice informed and warned them over the loudspeaker. Gohan glanced around, but even upon a second inspection of the room, he didn't see anything that could qualify as a 'course' for them to go through... Then the gravity kicked in, and at that exact moment he felt something small splat against the back of his arm. Even as he took to the air, more were sailing through the spot where he'd stood just a moment ago. He didn't dare wipe his hand over the area to 'see' what it was he'd been hit with, in case it turned out to be some sort of burning or itching agent again. Instead he just focused as best he could on not getting hit with anymore of them.  
Mirai was hit right in the shin with the first paintball, it's neon yellow payload breaking over him painlessly. At least he hoped it was traditional paint. As the gravity changed around them, Mirai realized this was going to be a messy one. The change in force made him over compensate a bit and get hit by a projectile he thought for sure he'd get around... Damn. Bright, crisp white made itself known across his chest. He would have taken the time to sigh if it had been under different circumstances. As he dodged and ducked through the air, he wondered if the number of hits would be specifically tied to the number of holes they had to dig, or just determine the duration of the digging. He guessed it didn't really matter. They needed to get faster, quicker, and stronger; so if they weren't able to pass Roane's test to his satisfaction, then they did need to be pushed further.  
From the control room, Roane concentrated on the screen in front of him, not bothering to keep track of his previous hits, since the computer would do that for him. It also was programmed to pick random lengths of time and varying degrees of gravity to switch between as it cycled through the session. Roane snorted out loud when the randomization made the artificial gravity drop all the way down to 1 G. Both Gohan and Mirai were too close to the ceiling when it happened, causing them both to smack into it before they could adjust. He fired a series of shots at them as he saw it happening, pegging each of them at least twice, and chuckling to himself. This was way better than any video game he'd ever played.  
They were able to dodge his attacks easily with no extra gravity, but it wouldn't last forever. The next randomization kicked in, pulling them back down to reality, and making Roane's job a lot easier. Even though the chamber could go all the way up to 1000G's, Roane had set it so the gravity wouldn't go past 550G's, which was their current tolerance level. They didn't know it though, since the only indication they had of how much gravity they'd been in was how tired they were, and Roane made sure they were pretty much exhausted all the time. They did get a day off to rest, so he didn't worry about pushing them too much. It wasn't like they couldn't take it. He'd been increasing the number of G's on them at a steady rate, and they'd been keeping up perfectly.  
Roane had tried it once himself, out of curiosity. He had made sure the computer would cut out at his much lower limit, just in case, and tried working out in first two, then three, all the way up to five times gravity, before he started having problems. Since he was good with computers himself, and hadn't hesitated to fiddle around with it a little. Gohan had helped build the thing anyway, so he figured that even if he did get something crossed, a relatively quick fix was there to be had. It was interesting though, when he'd been messing around with the internal calibrations, he'd found something odd. Not in the technology itself, that was pretty straight forward once it had been explained to him, but regarding the definitions he'd come across in the root menu. There were all sorts of parameters programmed into the thing, with the default setting at “Normal”. But the one below that though, was called “Human”, which in and of itself was strange, but in addition to that, all the higher settings read “SSJ” with a number after them... What the heck was that supposed to mean? It was beyond him to worry or care about it too much though. Probably some special Capsule Corp acronym that related to this particular invention.  
After a few hours of this, Roane brought their current session out of the randomized program, and switched it to a steady 551G's. Both Gohan and Mirai struggled to stay afloat in the weight, their reaction times cut to abysmal. Roane pegged each of them a dozen times, pretty much in a row, just to prove his point, then ended the simulation altogether. Pushing away from the controls, he went to address them in the chamber. It was standard procedure for them to be allowed to lay on the floor in a puddle of their own sweat and rest for the few seconds that it took Roane to get in there. So when he opened the door they were just as he expected, Gohan on his back panting, and Mirai on his knees in much the same state.  
“Horrifying” Roane said as a general statement. Both of them groaned and got to their feet. Damn, Gohan had hoped they hadn't done too badly, until the end that was. He definitely didn't miss the statement made in that last succession of taps. They needed to be trying harder.  
“I wonder” Roane began, walking over to them, “if the penalty had been that I killed a small, fuzzy, animal for every hit, if you would have done better?”  
Gohan's face was a mixture of anger and then shame as he was mortified by such an idea, but at the same time, now found himself questioning his own performance. Mirai stared resolutely at the opposite wall. But he did wince a little when Roane said the word “killed”.  
“And what if it wasn't an animal, hm?” Roane continued to drawl, “What if for every hit, your mother got punched, or kicked, or stabbed? What if failure meant that somebody died? Would you still have given it what you did just now?” Roane knew he was being harsh with them, but he'd seen what there were capable of, and could tell their 'hearts just weren't in it today', and that was about to fucking change. Now Gohan was staring directly forward, with a dark look in his eyes, while Mirai had silent tears streaming down is face.  
“What if the holes you're going to go dig right now were to bury all the people you've just let down?” he asked them carefully, for once not yelling or swearing at them at all, though this was probably the maddest he'd been in a while. He shook his head and turned away, at a ninety degree angle to them, as if he didn't want to look at them anymore.  
“Go get your shovels” he said in a dismissive tone. They filed out the door behind his back immediately, without a sound and without having answered him. They all knew what the answer was already.

While shovels were retrieved, Roane went ahead to the field where the digging would take place, carrying a load of large rocks on the back of his golf cart. He parked it in front of the pile afterward, so they weren't readily visible from the angle Gohan and Mirai would be approaching at. He normally prided himself on his improvisational skills, but he had a feeling that today he was not going to be relishing that fact. No, today was turning out to need more of an application of 'necessary evil' than anything else. Luckily, those boys had picked the right man for the job. Most of Roane's life had been one big reality check, and if they needed a dose of it to keep their motivation, then he'd shove it so far up their asses that they'd never want for 'motivation' again.  
Mirai's tears had dried by the time they got the shovels out of the supply room. He was glad Gohan said nothing, he knew they were both feeling pretty much the same level of shame right now. Roane had been right, it would have made a difference. And when the moment came again, that every little bit of power counted (because those moments always came), they would have regretted not giving every single ounce before, to get stronger. That was just the way it was, that was why they were doing this. Maybe they had gotten complacent during their time here, feeling like since they were doing something, they were doing enough... Granted, it's not like their lives or schedules were by any stretch of the imagination easy... But damn, Roane's comments had really hit home, he may not have even realized how much.  
When they reached him out in the field and saluted, Roane was leaning against the side of his golf cart.  
“Are you an only child, Private?” Roane asked Mirai before he let them start digging.  
“Uh, no sir” he answered, hesitating between the two truths momentarily.  
“So how many people are in your family?”  
“Five, sir, including himself.”  
“Alright, get started digging then, five holes” Roane instructed him. Then turning to Gohan, he asked him the same questions.  
“There's five of us as well, including my grandpa, he's still alive” Gohan told him, having obviously caught the significance and wanting to be truthful.  
“Ok, five holes for you as well then. And Privates, both of you, you make sure each one is six feet deep” he instructed grimly, his arms crossed over his chest.  
“Yes, sir.”

It had been a long time since Mirai had dug a grave. Let alone five of them. Surprisingly, as he made his way down into the earth, his resolve seemed to actually be firming with each foot of progress. He was doing the right thing. He would do the right thing, always. Whatever it took to protect his family and his friends, the Earth. From the bottom of his first hole, he couldn't see Gohan, but he hoped his love was faring as well as he was. He knew Gohan would come to the same conclusions though. Mirai began on his second grave, quickly giving Gohan an encouraging smile while he could see him. He never stopped moving though, and he never stopped digging.  
His muscles screamed at him, and his back ached like it would snap in two at any moment, but Gohan pushed on. He and Mirai dug with single minded purpose, as if each shovelful was a little scoop of redemption for their past slacking off. It was emotional, to be sure, but the tears he felt brimming were actually more out of joy than anything else. Joy that there were no bodies waiting to fill these holes. He'd dig to the core of the Earth and back, happily, to avoid a fate like that. When he and Mirai had finished all five of their holes, Roane actually had to give each of them a hand up out of the last ones, they were so exhausted. Before he let them go for lunch though, he had one more task for them to complete.  
“Each of you to go behind my cart and pick out five rocks from the pile there” he ordered. When they had done that, he handed each of them a piece of chalk.  
“I want you to write your parent's names on the first two, and then place each one at the head of a grave” he told them, watching stoically as they did it.  
“Now your siblings, and for you Gohan, your grandpa as well” he made them each place two more stones. After he had them each write their own names on the last one, he took them from their hands and then held onto them for a moment while he spoke.  
“No one digs their own grave. Unless you really want to dig each others some day, I suggest you get this 'giving 100%' crap out of your heads right now. You want to live? You want your family safe and your lover to be there to wake up to every morning? Then you shouldn't be giving 100%, you should be giving til you fucking bleed, until you black out and there's not a single breath left in your body. You should be scaring me with how bad you want this, if you want him to live” Roane said, giving them the rocks with each others names on them as he said the word “him”.  
Their faces were so dirty from all the digging, that the drops from their eyes turned to muddy tracks down their cheeks as they set the last stones down.  
“Now, go wash up for lunch and then meet me at the mess hall. You have 10 minutes” he said, driving away on his cart and leaving them behind. They walked quickly, nearly at a jog, to make it to the bathrooms in time to wash off their hands and faces before the meal. There was still too much for words between them, so Gohan simply took Mirai's hand as they went, squeezing it and earning him a small smile.  
As they splashed cold water and soap inside, Mirai seemed to get transfixed by the swirl of dirt running down the drain, and Gohan gave his shoulder a squeeze, looking at him with concern.  
“Sorry...” was all he said, his voice a little too soft, as if he was apologizing for much more than zoning out. Gohan pulled him into a fierce hug as his lover began crying full force.  
“It's ok, Mirai, shhhh” Gohan tried to comfort him, “We won't let that happen. I won't let that happen, and you won't let that happen...” he whispered to what was left of his lavender tresses. Mirai nodded against his chest, his tears dying down after a minute. Gohan leaned down and kissed him lovingly as they turned to go, but it was two minutes too late. The door to the bathroom flew open as if it had been kicked, and an enraged Roane stood there, catching it's bounce back toward him with what looked like practiced skill...  
“What the fuck, do you think you're doing?” he asked them, though it looked rather obvious from his perspective.  
“No, you don't understand” Gohan stepped between Roane and Mirai instinctively, holding out a hand to ward him from coming any closer, “He's dug that grave before, you can't expect him to be ok after that” Gohan demanded, defending the man he loved. He didn't specify which of those graves he was talking about. Fuck, he probably shouldn't have said that at all... As he waited for Roane's reaction, he ran over what other meanings he could have meant by that in his head.  
It all happened so quickly, that Mirai was left staring at Gohan's back where the door swinging open had been. He placed a hand on him and stepped around his side, knowing Roane wasn't any 'threat' to them, and that Gohan was just a little on edge right now.  
“No, he's right” Mirai agreed with Roane, even though he hadn't said anything else yet. “Gohan, that's exactly the point of this whole thing, weakness is a luxury. I can't be letting myself give in to stuff like that, even if it's brief, not if we're serious... I'm sorry, sir” he said, addressing Roane for the last part. Gohan heard what he was saying, and realized right away that he did indeed have to accept it... Both of them did. Backing down from Roane's presence, he nodded and waited for their punishment to be dealt out.  
“30 minutes” Roane had calmed down quite a bit by the time he began to speak again, “That's how much extra time I'm going to get from you every morning for the next week.” He knew just how much of 'morning people' they were not, especially Mirai, so it seemed fitting.  
“Yes, sir” they both chimed.  
“Damn right it's 'yes, sir',” Roane was looking directly at Gohan when he said that, “Now, get over to the mess hall before I change my mind about feeding you entirely.”

Not that there was normally a lot of conversation during it, but lunch today was a silent affair. Food went in mouths, and thoughts swirled in heads. Both of them questioned that it had been the full amount of time allotted for their meal when the timer went off, but looking down at the distinct lack of food left made them begin to believe. Talk about lost in thought... Mirai felt Gohan's hand slip into his again.  
“There's nowhere that I'd rather be” he smiled and whispered to him as they headed back out. That brought a smile to Mirai's face, and a little of the light back into his eyes.  
“This was all my idea, wasn't it?” he joked mildly, knowing Gohan wasn't blaming him at all for their emotional trial today, just trying to make the mood a little lighter.  
“Well, I think I deserve a little of the credit too” Gohan squeezed his hand firmly one more time before they stepped outside. One more small smile between them, and they were back in front of their sergeant, awaiting his orders.  
For some particular reason, this happened to be the day that the thought popped into Mirai's head to wonder when it was Roane ate his lunch. The guy was always right there waiting for them when they came out. Maybe he ate a protein bar or something while he was out here? That didn't seem like a fitting meal to Mirai, even for a regular human. Not that it was his place to ask, but now it was going to bug him... Maybe tomorrow when they ate he could get a peek out the window to see exactly what the man did while waiting for them. As they were jogging behind his golf cart to the next task for the afternoon, it also struck him that when they had to get up 30 minutes earlier, now so would Roane. Maybe he didn't mind mornings; the guy was always already in his element each morning when he woke them, that was for sure. Thinking about the life their instructor lived in between the moments they could see was better than dwelling on the past.

He was not going easy on them. Not at all. Having accidentally reduced both men to tears this morning was not a factor in his decision to spend the rest of the afternoon on activities that afforded more of a mindless repetition. Like jump rope, and working a punching bag, maybe with a few sit-ups/push-ups thrown in for good measure. He'd been livid when they hadn't shown up on time at the mess hall earlier. His automatic supposition seemed confirmed, too, when he'd opened the bathroom door. That was, until he saw the haunted look in Mirai's eyes. Connecting all the dots, he figured whoever Mirai had lost before had been more than just a friend, and obviously he'd been forced to bury the person/man himself...  
Roane sighed. They wouldn't be able to hear it with all the wind whipping around him as he drove anyway. He couldn't help but wonder how old Mirai had been when all that had taken place, it obviously left some deep scars on him, that he hid really well most of the time. That could definitely become a problem though... Mirai wasn't exactly that old right now, he couldn't have been much more than a kid, from the way he'd talked about growing up in war as a child. Even if he felt the smallest twinge of empathy for them, he wouldn't let it cloud his judgment. They'd still have a hard time crawling back to bed by the end of the day, he'd make sure of it.

It was amazing how many muscles you used to jump a couple inches off the ground. Especially in their current state, and after having done it 10,000 times in a row... Most of the muscles in his legs, as well as quite a few in his back and arms, were burning so badly Mirai expected them to seize up at any moment. Only 2000 left to go now. He didn't even think about sighing anymore, instead focusing on making it through the set as quickly as possible. While he worked with the jump rope, he could see Gohan at the punching bag, swinging away determinedly, Roane watching his every move, making sure he kept up proper form even in his fatigued state.  
Gohan could literally feel the sweat pouring out of him. Every thrust forward with his arm left little droplets of water in it's wake. Roane was always good with keeping them hydrated, but today had been one of the most taxing experiences they'd had in awhile, and that was saying something. He made sure the intensity of his assault on the punching bag never wavered though, and he mentally pushed himself just as hard as Roane was. Well, actually, Roane wasn't saying much, except to goad him here and there if he did slip up. Gohan's breathing was labored and his clothes soaked completely through by the time Mirai finished with his assignment. Both of them were more than happy to work a different set of muscles now, as they traded positions.  
Well, Mirai had hoped it would be a little bit different set, for his arms, but he soon found they were turning to lead weights as he began pounding away at the bag. He threw a couple of horrendous jabs in a row, and Roane called him on it.  
“That was fucking sloppy, Private, I wouldn't want a man who punches like that on my team, you better get fucking with it right fucking now” he shouted at him from only a few feet away.  
“Sorry sir” he replied quickly, redoubling his focus. He tuned out everything but bag in front of him, not even really seeing Roane's form beside him, and attacked with much better skill. For the next 15 minutes or so anyway. Unfortunately, it had taken him many multiples of that to do 12,000 reps with the jump rope, and Gohan was not that much faster than him. He could feel his limbs slowing, even as much as he willed them not to. As his ability faltered again, Roane's presence was suddenly in the forefront of his consciousness once more.  
“Is this the same way you'd defend the men who fell for you?” Roane asked him coldly, his eyes boring into him. He knew which buttons to push now, but he'd not yet discovered where the line was. And he didn't think Mirai had reached his physical limits yet either.  
Roane's comment hit Mirai mid-swing, and he wasn't sure what part of it was the final straw, but he had a feeling it was the way he'd said the word 'fell'. His eyes flashed, and Gohan stopped jumping rope as Mirai's hair glowed and stood on end. The punching bag ripped off it's chain, cracking the support beam it was attached to, and sailing to crash through the wall on the other side of the room. A line of sand was left behind from it's split seams, like a trail of blood leading back to the culprit. Mirai couldn't hold the transformation though, he just didn't have enough energy left for it. As his hair sank back down, so did he, to his knees right where he was. He only managed to balance just well enough to keep from falling to his hands as well.  
“I told you to push yourself, Private, but that did not include some sort of permission to destroy my gym” Roane scolded him angrily, as if Mirai was acting like he was a not-too-bright child.  
“Fuck you” Mirai looked Roane right in the eye and let his anger tell their instructor exactly what he thought of his methods. The angle Roane's eyebrow shot up at let him know he was going to regret that. He could feel tears of frustration and an old pain beginning to stream down his face, but refused to let himself give in completely and sob. He started to fall over out of exhaustion, but managed to catch himself on one hand. Gohan took a step to move towards him, but Mirai waved him off. He would only make things worse if he tried to interfere... Mirai had a feeling he was going to pay dearly for the little lapse in judgment he'd just had, in swearing at their sergeant. He hoped Roane would leave Gohan out of it, since this was more like his own little private rebellion.  
“Take a good look Gohan, because with tears” Roane motioned to him with a wave of his hand, “is exactly how he'll honor you too, when you're gone.”  
Mirai looked up at him with a stunned mixture of horror and shock on his face. His eyes flicked to Gohan, as if afraid of what he might see there. Gohan was wide-eyed and frozen, like a deer in the headlights, not sure what to do as he obeyed Roane and looked at Mirai, but clearly did not want to have to say anything.  
Because he knows Roane is right, Mirai heard his own voice whispering through his head. Suddenly, he found himself standing again, wiping his tears with the backs of clenched fists, and the well of pain within him closing up. As he took deep even breaths, he also found himself staring Roane down, but not for the same reason he had earlier. The look on Roane's face was virtually unreadable.  
“Follow me” he ordered curtly, obedience a given, turning on his heel and striding from the room. Mirai happened to catch another glance at Gohan as they moved, and what he saw there was worth all the pain, both physical and emotional, that he'd ever endured. Pride. Gohan was proud of him. He could see it in his eyes. He was proud of him for getting back up, moving through the pain, hell, maybe even a little for telling Roane 'fuck you' to begin with... The pride in Gohan's eyes erased any fear Mirai may have had about the upcoming punishment, and he walked out the door with the beginnings of a tired smile on his face.  
Outside, Roane didn't stop at the punishments board like they thought he would. He walked right past it and headed to their barracks, with them trying desperately to keep up with his angry pace while they were so spent. They made it inside just in time to see him grab the corner of Mirai's bed frame and begin dragging it with one hand back towards the door. They both jumped out of his way as he shouted at 'Private Briefs' to grab his things. Could he get kicked out of his own program? The thought flitted through Mirai's head. He didn't think so though, besides, that wouldn't make any sense for Roane to be moving his bed then... Moving his bed? Mirai grabbed the couple piles of clothes that served for his belongings here, and quickly headed back outside.  
At least the drag marks in the dirt would be easy to follow. His eyes scanning ahead of him faster than his legs could move right now, Mirai saw that Roane wasn't taking him very far, just to the empty building on the other side of the supply room. Gohan was following behind him still, not having been given any countermanding orders, but kept glancing over his shoulder to see if Mirai was close to catching up yet. Roane stopped in front of the double doors that led inside the structure, fiddling with his keys and undoing the lock on the door in silence. Mirai managed to make it to their position by the time Roane was flinging them open and pulling the bed again. This must have been another store room, but for bigger things, because it was filled with empty warehouse style scaffolding, with one wide walkway leading down the middle.  
The metal frame slid much easier over the concrete floor inside. Roane swung the bed around him to let it skid across the open space of the walkway a bit. The pillow and most of the blanket fell off with the force of it, before it finally came to rest. As if he gave a flying fuck.  
“For the next week you'll be sleeping in storage unit C, Private Briefs, and I'm increasing the length of the previous punishment to two weeks, for the both of you. If you don't think that's fair, then maybe you should use this time to re-evaluate just how fucking fair it would be to let the other members of your team all get killed because you couldn't hold your shit together” Roane was right in his face as Mirai held onto his sets of clothing. Moving back from him only a bit, he turned slightly so his presence could encompass both Mirai and Gohan.  
“And since I am not going to make two different wake up calls every fucking morning, the both of you will be outside, standing at attention in front of the punishments board waiting for me when it's time for inspections” he informed them.  
“Yes sir!” they both acknowledged.  
“Now, put your shit down and get outside. Some new manual labor just got added to this afternoon's work” Roane glowered at them.  
As he lead them out to a new area of the base, Roane couldn't shake the image of the punching bag exploding through the wall of the gym out of his head. Something in the back of his brain was nagging him about it, but he didn't have very long to dwell on things like that right now. Maybe it was because Gohan hadn't questioned it at all, didn't even seem surprised by it, like it was perfectly normal for … normal … and below that, 'Human'... Roane literally shook his head to clear it, deciding that outcome to be ridiculous before he even let the thought fully form.  
Unlocking the gate to a separate, field-like area of open storage, Roane stepped back to reveal to them thousands upon thousands of sandbags. He'd ask a few pertinent questions about just how many 'people' they knew of who could withstand a gravitational force of over 550 times Earth's at a later point. Right now he had a different point to make.

When working with a normal sized unit, could take years to be able to read each of the dozens of men well, and that was provided they all stayed stationed underneath you that whole time. In this situation, interacting with only Gohan and Mirai for the last six months had definitely sped up the process. Both of the men were tough and incredibly knowledgeable, but Roane could visibly see the difference in how they reacted to the introduction of emotional stress. Gohan was like a rock in a river, feeling the push of it for sure, but ultimately letting it wash over him. If he had a breaking point, Roane hadn't found it yet.  
Mirai on the other hand, seemed to have a rather stoic demeanor, but the man internalized everything. He didn't act like he clung to the wounds of his past, in fact it was almost like whatever happened had been shoved to the furthest reaches of his mind, and never dealt with properly. So when it did bubble up for some reason, the man was not prepared to handle it. That was the kind of thing that got you killed on the battlefield. Or even worse, got other people killed when you lost focus. Guilt could eat a man alive quicker than any animal or disease.  
Watching as the two of them sluggishly moved sandbags into a wall-like shape, he thought about how far they'd come in some ways, and how far they still had to go in others. He'd only pushed them until they physically collapsed a few times, but today was definitely going to be one of those days. He also kept an eye open for any other opportunities to goad Mirai. He didn't enjoy playing “the bad guy,” but life was like that, in the real world, it liked to kick you when you were down sometimes. Or a lot of the time, depending on who you were and how much stock you put in things like luck and fate.  
Gohan's lungs burned. Every breath was filled with fire, and he felt like he was going to pass out at any moment. He carried the sandbag in an odd position, because those were the muscles with the least amount of cramps in them. Roane hadn't told them how wide or high to make the “wall” when they started, which was basically a signal to them that they were going to keep building until they couldn't anymore, length and width be damned. Gohan shook his head a little as he began to see the black speckles that immediately preceded his passing out. Bending over with his head down around his waist for a few breaths helped, but he knew it would only be for so long.  
Two more sandbags later, they began enveloping his vision again, and this time bending over and breathing didn't help. Gohan landed with a thud against the ground, and Mirai looked soon to follow. It was obviously sheer will that kept him on his feet at this point. Normally, he'd be the one to hit the dirt first, even if not by much.  
“Private Briefs” Roane shouted at him, “That is the sorriest, most god-awful excuse for a wall that I've seen in a long time.”  
“I'm sorry, sir. Would you like me to start over?” Mirai asked resolutely, panting and bent forward enough to lock his elbows and support some of his upper body's weight on his knees. That actually made Roane chuckle with the absurdity of it.  
“No, Private, that's enough for now. I'll have you both re-do it correctly tomorrow. Get him out of here so I can lock this place back up” he said with a wave to Gohan's prostrate form.  
“Yes sir.”  
Trudging over to Gohan, Mirai took a deep breath and let it out slowly, visualizing himself picking up the man without collapsing... To his surprise, he was able to sort of sling him over his back, using one of Gohan's arms over his shoulder to steady his weight. After a few seconds of breathing heavily and watching his drops of sweat make little poofs in the powdery dirt below him, and he felt ready to take a step. He had only managed four of them when he heard Roane's voice again.  
“Do you love him?” he asked Mirai quietly, from off to the side where the man wouldn't be able to see him.  
“Yes. Of course” Mirai panted, his step faltering a little when he had to breath and speak at the same time.  
“You know, there are some people who think there's no place for love on the battlefield, inside a soldiers' heart. The general theory being that it makes a man weak, prone to distraction” Roane paused to see Mirai's reaction, and to his surprise, the man took the effort to speak.  
“Do you believe that?” Mirai genuinely wondered. With all he'd been through today, that statement suddenly put Roane's motives in question for him, and he really needed to know what was going on in his sergeant's mind right now.  
“There are others who say that the bravest, most heroic feats can only be accomplished by someone who has something to fight for” Roane continued, “and from what I've seen, both are right.”  
Mirai was only about 20 feet from the gate now, but Roane's statement shocked him enough to make him pause.  
“What do you mean, how can you think both are right?” he grunted, eyes closed as he concentrated and began moving forward again. They blinked open again after a few steps, making sure he was still headed in line with the exit.  
“It depends on the man” Roane informed him. “Some, when they reach the crux of a situation, crumble and give in to defeat when they think they've failed their loved ones. Others, rise above and use the fact that they love as a reason to hold on to the last breath, to fight beyond the normal limits of body and mind. So you see, it isn't loving or not that tips a battle, it's the choice of how you let it affect you that does. Are you going to let him make you stronger, or be just another burden?”  
Mirai's mind was in such a whirl that he didn't realize Roane had asked him a question right away. He started to pause again, but Roane had come up beside him as he approached the gate and motioned for him to continue moving.  
“Actually, don't try to answer that now. Think of it as a homework assignment for the length of your punishments. At the end of these two weeks, you can tell me which kind of man you're going to be” Roane paused, looking Mirai in the eye, “and I'll tell you if I think you're right or not.”  
Even with sweat running off his forehead, and being bent at an odd angle to carry Gohan, Mirai nodded solemnly, receiving a returning nod of acknowledgment. As Mirai finally passed through the gate, Roane rolled it shut behind them, locking it back up securely and putting away the keys.  
“Alright, you're dismissed for the day” was the last thing he said to him before turning and heading back to his own room. He wasn't sure if he was expecting to hear the thud of Mirai collapsing on the spot or not... After a few moments of no sound reaching him though, he just had to look back and make completely sure. A smile flashed across his face as he saw the silhouette of Mirai carrying Gohan making it's way back toward the barracks, and he had a feeling they wouldn't be needing that whole two weeks in order to come to a mutual decision.


	6. Vacation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone gets some well deserved rest, but how long will it last?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Notes: This Gohan x Mirai fic is set in Lord Truhan’s “Sergeant” universe.

Thirty minutes was much more of an eternity than Gohan had ever realized before the two weeks of their punishment. He didn't resent Mirai for it, he knew it was both of their fault's and they were both suffering. He did have to admit though, that Roane's methods were working. He hadn't seen such intense and focused determination in Mirai in a long time...not since he'd come to their world the first time, with the burden of two existences riding on his shoulders. In fact, at times he could even feel it radiating through his energy like it did with Vegeta. Thankfully it was the worst of the Vegeta inherited traits that surfaced, and Mirai kept his otherwise hopeful and caring personality.  
Roane rode them hard and put them away wet every night until Gohan suddenly found himself waking at 5am on his own, having begun to adjust to the new schedule. He sighed, but couldn't really say it was something truly horrible when it began happening on those last few days. Much of their 'extra' time was spent scrubbing already clean fixtures, and Gohan now knew exactly how many tiles across the bathrooms and showers were, 104 and 128, respectively. They were on their hands and knees, scrubbing them right now actually.  
It was their last day of punishment, and when the door opened and Roane came to check on their progress, Gohan was surprised that he called a halt to their activity, and told them to hit the showers. He didn't dare question the man, but, shower? At 8:30 in the morning? They'd already done so earlier as part of readying for their morning inspection of course, but they'd barely worked up much of a sweat, even though it was a bit muggy with all the soap and warm water... After delivering his instructions, Roane turned on his heel and left them without another word, obviously expecting to be obeyed regardless. Gohan looked at Mirai and raised an eyebrow, to which Mirai just shrugged his shoulders. They both headed back to the barracks to get their stuff and shower up as ordered.  
“I thought if anything, we'd be worked so hard we fell asleep in the dirt tonight, with it being the last day and all...” Gohan commented.  
“Yeah, something definitely seems off... I can't think of a single exercise or 'activity' that we'd need to be clean for...” Mirai trailed off. They were quick and kept to their normal 5 minutes, since they hadn't been given any special instructions to go with it. After they were done, they found Roane waiting for them back at the foot of their beds, with his suitcase looking packed and ready to go beside him. Suddenly the bottom dropped out of Mirai's stomach. The first thought that flashed through his head was that their sergeant was leaving them. They hadn't performed well enough and he was fed up or thinking that they weren't worth his time anymore. Then Roane opened his mouth, and Mirai found quite the opposite of that to be true.  
“Private Briefs, Private Son, you have 20 minutes to be packed and standing at attention. Your time starts now” Roane indicated, clicking his stopwatch. Both of them sprung into action right away, though they used capsules and not suitcases to accomplish the goal.  
“Do you mind if I ask, sir, what we're packing for? Just so I know what to bring...” Gohan asked meekly as he pulled out basics he knew he'd need no matter what. Roane grinned at them, an expression at which he was his most handsome, Gohan thought, and proceeded to inform them of what was going on.  
“You can go ahead and pack for a tropical climate boys. And I mean your civilian clothes, not just our standard uniforms here. You two have improved drastically, both physically (he nodded to Gohan) and mentally (he nodded to Mirai), and frankly, I think we're all starting to feel a bit stir-crazy on this base. It's been a long time since our last outing, and you've earned a break...” he cleared his throat just the tiniest bit, and said in just a hair softer of a voice, “Most men would have broken, or quit, after what I put you through. So consider this congratulations for surviving this far” he winked at them to take the edge off of it, and Mirai chose to interpret that as him being in a rare playful mood, and not as in there was little chance of them surviving the rest of the boot camp...

Several hours, a beat up old jeep, a bus, and then a slightly skeptical plane ride in the back of an empty C-17 Globemaster III later, the three of them arrived at an island sprinkled with palm trees and high rise hotels. Gohan could barely remember the last time he'd set foot on a beach, and it all seemed a bit surreal to him after spending so long under Roane's thumb, however voluntarily.  
“Welcome to paradise, boys. There's no 'sir' or saluting here, just sand, sun, and some amazing ass” Roane grinned as he surveyed the distant beach. The military base they had landed on gave them no qualms about leaving the grounds, though Mirai suspected it'd have been different if they'd been going the other way. He was just glad to see they weren't going to be actually staying on it. On the outside of the gates, a taxi was waiting for them already, and Roane walked right up to it, speaking with the driver only briefly before they all got in. Gohan and Mirai were told to stay “in uniform” for the trip, something they had been hesitant about at first, but now their rather undocumented flight seemed to make it all fit together.  
“Do you mind if I ask where we're going to be staying?” Mirai decided to go ahead and ask as they got closer and closer to the beach. He wouldn't put it past Roane to have them pitch a couple tents down by the water, and though he'd still enjoy the break if that was the plan, it wasn't exactly Mirai's ideal vacation situation.  
“Well, I took the liberty of paying for the hotel out of the boot camp's general fund, but airfare all the way out here would have broken the bank, so that's why I arranged for a friend to pick us up instead” he winked, settling back into his seat and looking as “at ease” as Mirai had ever seen him. “I was even able to get us a military discount, so I'm sure given the expected return on this investment, that our little venture will be approved by the board” he grinned. It was an infectious grin, and infectious attitude. Gohan chuckled and Mirai nodded with a smile. If they had known about it ahead of time, they might have needed some convincing that going so far wasn't frivolous at this point, but coming off of such a hard couple weeks, it seemed like the grandest idea in the world right now.  
“Even a career man needs time to recharge his batteries, get a little R&R every once in awhile” Roane explained, and once again he added, “You boys have earned it.” Mirai felt proud that Roane passed down that bit of praise to them, it wasn't often that they were told anything but what they were going to be doing next.  
“Thank you, sir - uh, Roane” Mirai didn't think he'd ever get used to calling their sergeant by his first name. It seemed almost disrespectful to him now. “So, how long are we here for? The weekend?” he asked, curious just how he and Gohan would need to divide their time between catching up on sleep, having sex, and exploring their locale. Roane's smile widened even further and he held up three fingers in the air.  
“Three days?” Mirai said happily, unable to hide all of his excitement at the prospect. Even Gohan beside him seemed to perk up quite a bit at seeing that. Since he knew they were on their own time now, as opposed to being on Roane's, he let his hand fall to Mirai's leg and squeezed his knee in anticipation.  
“No boys, not three days, we have three weeks to soak up all this island has to offer. You're welcome” he said afterward, as a given. Mirai's mouth must have fallen open in shock, because the next thing Roane did was chuckle and lean over to him, closing it again with a single finger. “Oh come on boys, I'm really not that bad, is a true vacation so surprising? I've just been doing my job, that's all” he said, teasing them as he relaxed back in his seat again.  
“No sir, I mean, Roane, Roane – you have been doing your job, and an excellent one too at that” Mirai couldn't stop grinning like an idiot now, thinking of all the free time they had coming up, hell, that they had right now. He wanted to express his gratitude over just how much he appreciated that Roane did do his job well, but the whole 'true vacation' thing seemed to be setting in over Gohan at the same moment. Suddenly the hand on Mirai's knee went higher than he would have expected, considering that they had company.  
“So, that means we get to do whatever we want, you know, within reason, even right now?” Gohan asked. Mirai blushed from his shoulders to the top of his head, and turned to Gohan with a no-nonsense voice.  
“Control yourself” he said as if scolding a misbehaving child, motioning in Roane's direction with his eyes.  
“Get in my lap” Gohan said back in a husky and equally no-nonsense tone, reaching over and unbuckling Mirai's seat belt. It wasn't as if he really needed it anyway. In the midst of a disbelieving sound from his lover, Gohan pulled Mirai over on him in one smooth motion, and put his hand on the back of his neck so he couldn't pull away from the kiss.  
“Don't worry, I'll be able to make it until we get to the hotel … probably” Gohan smiled in a very pleased with himself manner, and held Mirai in his lap to kiss him again. Mirai wasn't exactly one to be shy about sex, but it flustered him to be speaking to Roane one minute and then suddenly being molested in the next. Speaking of Roane... Mirai was shocked (but should he have been?...) to see that the man was openly watching them, since they had decided to put on a show. When he saw Mirai notice his gaze though, Roane cleared his throat decisively, but not with any indication that he was upset, and then spoke up.  
“You know there are seat belt laws on this island” Roane was his comment in an amused tone, grinning from ear to ear and still not looking away. Mirai had had just about enough of Gohan's lips on his neck to decide it wasn't worth fighting anymore at that point, so he literally said, “Ah, screw it” and began kissing him again to the sound of Roane chuckling.  
When they finally pulled up to their destination, a breathless Gohan and Mirai got out of the taxi on the same side, but not too quickly to keep from hearing Roane say, “Kids” with a dismissive laugh as he settled up with the driver.  
“Kids huh?” Gohan whispered in Mirai's ear as Roane got his suitcase out of the trunk, “It's been a long time since we've been accused of that, hasn't it?” he asked with a gleam in his eye.  
“It's also been a long time since you were so horny you couldn't keep from ravishing me in public” Mirai spoke normally and put a teeny tiny bit of emphasis on the word 'public'. He wondered if the camouflage of his pants would help hide an erection as they walked... Gohan began humming the tune to “I am 16 going on 17” as they waited in line to check in, and Mirai snorted, “More like 16 going on 49” he said over his shoulder.  
“Mmm, and yet you don't look a day over 25, babe” Gohan said, wrapping his arms around Mirai's waist from behind and ignoring anything that might put a damper on the mood. Mirai tilted his head to the side and lifted his shoulders for a moment in a, “Hm, I guess you're right” sort of gesture, after which he finally settled against Gohan's chest. It seemed Roane was accomplishing all of the checking in for them just fine on his own anyway.  
It was a good thing they didn't have any bags of their own, because they probably would have forgotten them in the lobby. They made out on the entire elevator ride up. As the doors parted and they had to get off, they were once again reminded of Roane's presence. He held out a pair of key cards to them after having tapped on Gohan's shoulder.  
“Room 502. I believe that's to our right, boys” he said, almost laughing. Suddenly an awkward, and embarrassing for what it said about his state of mind, thought ran through Mirai's head. The three of them weren't all sharing the same room, where they?... He glanced to Gohan as Roane began to head down the hall without them. He could tell with one look that Gohan was thinking the same thing, but had no idea how to politely broach the subject either... And god damn it, Mirai wasn't entirely Gohan wasn't too horny to attempt doing it with Roane in the room anyway. They followed behind him, subdued a bit in their uncertainty, and just waited to see what would happen.  
Mirai's heart skipped a happy beat when Roane walked past them to room 502B. Even though only a single wall separated them, that was all he needed mentally to screw Gohan until the sun rose. Gohan himself had a big grin plastered back over his face, and he looked practically ready to burst of happiness. That was the ability right there, the way the light filled up his eyes, so genuine, so truthful, that had made Mirai fall for him in the first place.  
“Now I'll add one caveat before we part boys, part of the special discount entailed connected rooms, so there's a door leading between ours... Of course we'll treat it as if it doesn't exist, for the sake of privacy, but it's just FYI” Roane commented as he slid his own card through the slot on his door. A tiny light flashed green and he turned the handle, but he only tossed his suitcase onto the floor without really going in.  
“I'll just head out and explore a bit while you two 'unpack'... I'm sure I saw a strip of little restaurants down on the beach that would be more than happy to acquaint me with the local cuisine” he smiled and shook his head as if there was nothing to be done about the two of them. Mirai could hardly feel bad about the extra layer of privacy, and he decided they would have to do something really nice now for Roane while they were here to show their appreciation. He didn't have time to say much or offer anything at the moment though, because while Roane was walking and talking, Gohan had unlocked their door. All Mirai got out was a sort of cut off “Thanks, sir” as Gohan wrapped an arm around his waist and hauled him inside.  
Roane didn't stop to look back, but he was stuck at the elevator for a moment while he waited for it to come back to their floor. He had his wallet on him already, which was everything he really needed to go out, and the uniform would attract plenty of the attention he wanted in the right bar. His mind rolled over the events of the day as he sighed with impatience, or maybe he was just feeling tired. It would be nice someday, to have someone to pull into a hotel room in a lust driven haze... Someone he actually knew and cared for, rather than whoever had agreed to come back with him after drinking. But that was neither here nor there. Roane didn't exactly live the kind of life conducive to having 'relationships', and Gohan and Mirai... He shook his head as the doors finally opened for him, clearing his head and pressing the lobby button while he re-prepared himself to have a good time.

Mirai couldn't have told you what color the décor inside the room was, how many beds it had or if there was a TV or not. The moment the door clicked closed behind them, he was consumed by Gohan; his lips and hands and tongue seemed to be everywhere all at once. He was shirtless and Gohan had him pinned against the wall. Then he vaguely remembered their boots being tossed in the general direction of the door. Before he knew it he was face down on the sheets with Gohan's hand in his hair and his rock hard length pumping in and out of him. It was fiercer and rougher than anything he'd had in a long time, and he offered up a long, satisfied moan to let Gohan know how much he was enjoying it.  
Gohan yanked his head to the side, so Mirai could breathe more freely, and slowed his pace just a bit, the frantic feeling of needing to be inside him now having been eased. They rocked like that for a long time, occasionally switching positions so Gohan could make sure he hit every angle Mirai loved inside of him. On his second orgasm, Mirai wanted to see that unfocused culmination of pleasure in Gohan's eyes too, and he began to squeeze him with a purposeful rhythm as Gohan thrust. His dark haired lover's head snapped up, and he told Mirai with an open-mouthed disbelief,  
“Ahhh, I wasn't planning, ngghhh, on cumming yet, babe...”  
“But, I want you to” Mirai insisted, making it sound more like a moan than a request. God, with his lover being this sexy, Gohan could hardly deny him. He gave a hearty grunt as Mirai continued to apply that extra friction, and Gohan came forcefully a moment later while Mirai's hands cupped his face. Euphoria closed over Gohan in a single mind melting second, and Mirai got to see the sight he'd wished for while his ass was filled with Gohan's cum. He never wanted it to end, he felt so fulfilled and sated in that moment.  
To think they had a full three weeks to just lay in each other's arms if they wanted was almost overwhelming to him. Gohan nuzzled at his neck while they both enjoyed the afterglow, and Mirai closed his eyes so he could focus on feeling the cum ooze out of him. They were going to make quite a mess at this rate, but Mirai smiled as he thought about how it wouldn't have to be them cleaning it up while they were here. He remembered a time when they had a housekeeper and a chauffeur, all that, but he wouldn't have traded the closeness of an intimacy long put off for those luxuries.  
“Love you, Gohan” he murmured, keeping his eyes closed.  
“Don't fall asleep on me yet, I'm nowhere near done with you” Gohan whispered back cheekily, “and I love you too” he added, delivering a sensual bite to Mirai's neck. The fun was just beginning for both of them, and Mirai knew in the back of his mind they were going to have to do something really, really nice for Roane to pay him back for this.

Couples who have been together for this long tend to have their own little 'signals'. For instance, Gohan knew as soon as they awoke that the way Mirai's foot gently rubbed back and forth over his, with no other part of his body moving yet, that his lover wanted to top him. It wasn't something he asked for very often, and usually no words where even spoken about it. It wasn't something he needed permission for to begin with. Gohan enjoyed seeing this side of him, and snuggled groggily against his chest. Soon afterward, gentle fingers were massaging his ass, and Mirai's morning erection was pressed against him none too casually. The rubbing grind at his hip was almost like a warning as slender fingers delved deeper into the area between his cheeks. Gohan raised his leg, curving it over Mirai's hip possessively, yet giving him better access at the same time.  
Mirai knew Gohan would need much more careful stretching than he did, since his body wasn't accustomed to the intrusion. For a few minutes, all he did was rub and stimulate the tight little ring of muscle, until Gohan's body began to rub and rock against him, silently asking for more. This wasn't an easy position to stretch him well from, so Mirai withdrew his hand for a moment so he could roll on top of his lover. Gohan smiled up at him with a lazy and content visage, and Mirai was almost distracted from his mission by kissing him. Almost.  
By the time Mirai had two fingers in him, Gohan was fully awake and panting now. His own erection pointed proudly at the ceiling, and Mirai amused himself every once in a while by licking at it or nibbling at the base of it. Gohan gave him long, throaty moans when he did that, and Mirai cherished them. He entered in with three fingers now, enveloping Gohan's head with his lips to distract him. Mirai's talented tongue scooped up all the little drops of precum that were nestled in Gohan's slit, and he could feel Gohan's grip on the sheet starting to pull it up off the corners of the bed. He removed his mouth from Gohan's member, and rubbed his cheek against the straining firmness while his fingers continued to explore and widen.  
“I think you'll be ready soon, love” Mirai purred, “Don't you?”  
“Now, I'm ready now” Gohan groaned, his voice gravelly from lust and the leftovers of sleep. Thankfully, Mirai knew just how to warm him up and bring out all those lovely noises he had yet to hear this morning. Regular moans were not enough for him when he got like this. He wanted to take every little “Ah!” and “Hnnggh!” and eat them up straight from Gohan's lips. When Mirai wanted Gohan, it was always to make love to him.  
Mirai also had a tendency to over do it with the lube in his efforts to make sure Gohan felt good, but the warm and wet squish when they came together wasn't exactly something either of them would complain about. Gohan's head rolled back as Mirai entered him, and he let out a happy exclamation at being filled with him so fully. It did sting a bit, but it was hardly enough to be worth mentioning, since Mirai had been so thorough. Kisses began falling all over Gohan's shoulders and neck, and he sighed, running a hand through Mirai's hair lovingly. It had grown out a bit, plenty for Gohan to get a good handful of it, and he was content.  
Mirai began to glide in and out of him, his every movement graceful and fluid. Gohan kissed him, glad in this moment that his lover liked to stay low and close to him while he was in charge. As Gohan began to make the first of those grunts and gasps, Mirai lowered himself even more, basically in a very low push up, so he could catch the poignant noises right as they escaped his lover.  
“You're so beautiful, so strong and handsome” Mirai murmured as he smoothed himself over Gohan's prostate again and again. Years ago, Gohan had thought the gentle way Mirai would take him meant that those were the ways he really wanted to be treated in bed himself... He was set straight afterward with a blush and a firm talking to about how much Mirai enjoyed the fierceness he so often displayed. It was a dichotomy in the man that Gohan found completely endearing, and didn't mind using to its fullest advantage. Mirai would lure you in with soft and gentle touches, then expect you to completely consume him in return.  
As the pleasure built higher and higher inside of Gohan, he moaned, “Mirai...”, it being enjoyable to even just form his lover's name on his lips at this point. He held onto Mirai's back and felt the inexplicable pleasure of his orgasm begin to slowly creep up on him. There was nothing sudden or unexpected about the orgasms Mirai gave him. He could feel every miniscule increment leading up to the overwhelmingness. And god, did they seem to go on forever because of it. Gohan whined unconsciously as his body tensed, seeming to hang on the edge for eternity, before two purposefully quick thrusts on Mirai's part had him shouting and spilling himself with abandon.  
Mirai sealed his mouth over Gohan's with the most force he'd displayed during the entire session, eating every exclamation before they could even leave his lips. He coated the inside of Gohan's body with his own seed, blissfully lost in the moment of pleasuring the man he loved. In his mind this was just as much for Gohan as it was for him.  
They hadn't left the hotel room for about 48 hrs at that point, but it felt like longer. Having not been able to so slowly and thoroughly enjoy each other in a long time, they were in no hurry to explore any of the island yet. They had meals delivered by room service and never made the bed, though Mirai had a feeling they'd need to let housekeeping in to 'tidy up a bit' pretty soon now...

 

The island turned out to be bustling with life, especially at night. Roane had no trouble locating a good time, but he had not been expecting to be run across by any familiar faces here.  
“Sergeant Flynn?”  
Roane hadn't been called that in nearly half a decade, and not by anybody he'd have expected to bump into at a gay bar years later. He turned to address the voice, and was actually pleasantly surprised to see the man it belonged to.  
“Private Sasaki? What the hell are you doing here?” he beamed, shaking the man's hand and meaning here on this island in general, not here at the bar. He figured the gay bar was fairly obvious on both their parts. Sasaki Takameru, or “Taka” for short as he'd been nicknamed in the service, was part of one of the last groups Roane had trained before leaving the establishment.  
“Well, actually, my enlistment was up last year, and I joined an MMA league to kill time until I figured out where I wanted to go from there” Taka shrugged his shoulders, casually settling against the bar next to Roane right away. “We had a tournament here last week, and I decided to stick around for a while since the season's over... What brings you all the way out here, if you don't mind me asking, sir?” …

Takameru was loud in bed. Roane had sort of an academic knowledge that such people existed, but he realized now that he'd never met anyone quite like this before. When the first resonating groan of “Fuck me harder” rang out through his hotel room, he found he was happy to comply, eavesdroppers be damned. There was something wonderfully satisfying about each shout of “Oh, god! Fuck!” and, “Fuck, yes!” that exploded from the younger man. He wasn't exactly worried about what Gohan and Mirai would think, since he was pretty sure their world consisted of nothing but their own hotel bed right now anyway.  
Something interesting happened the next morning though, when he woke up with Takameru sprawled across him, his smaller weight feeling quite comfortable while on top of him. The sleepy blonde asked him what was for breakfast without really opening his eyes, and Roane couldn't help the pleased grin that spread over his own face, and he found himself saying,  
“Whatever you want.”  
Which turned out to be sex and pancakes. Separately, of course... The way Taka ate them, blueberry with a mountain of whipped cream, slathering them with syrup to the point of his plate becoming a small puddle, made Roane stare obviously enough to be caught.  
“What? I work out” Taka said with a fake defensiveness, and a beaming yet mischievous smile.  
… Oh no …  
Roane was grinning back and chuckling before he realized it, and suddenly it hit him that he found Taka to be genuinely cute. Not that he would ever say that to the man... He remembered him always being very bright and determined while under his command, but he never really knew him well enough to gauge how he'd take that sort of compliment.  
“Does your hotel even have a gym? The one I'm at doesn't, they probably figure most people will be getting their workouts on the beach” Roane mused.  
“No, mine doesn't either... I suppose a run down the beach is all well and good though... You feel a need to work off those calories right at this moment?” Taka's eyes laughed at him while their conversation stayed polite.  
Two could play at that game.  
“Maybe, though, I can think of much more interesting ways to burn calories than filling our socks with sand” Roane leaned back from his plate, crossing his arms over his chest and openly eyeing Taka, as if in challenge. The bastard just blinked at him calmly and pulled his fork out of his mouth with deliberate slowness, chewing thoroughly while holding Roane's gaze.  
“Well how about this...We could try both, and see whose methods burn more calories at the end of the day.” Taka suggested when he was done, his fork turning in his hand and slicing through another bite of pancake with a precision that seemed to punctuate his words. He smiled as if daring Roane to pretend he didn't know the innuendo they were talking about, and put the new bite in his mouth. Roane watched the sugary confection pass over his lips and said,  
“Deal.”

 

On the fourth day since they had arrived in paradise, Gohan and Mirai finally left their hotel room. It was just supposed to be long enough for the cleaning staff to get them fresh linens etc, but after dinner, Gohan was suddenly overcome with the urge to walk down the beach hand in hand with his lover. It was a little past sunset by then, but the fading dusk was no less romantic to them. They were mostly quiet, letting the ocean breeze stir their clothing instead of flit off with their words. After a half hour or so, Mirai tugged gently on Gohan's hand, with the light almost failing behind him.  
“Ready to go back?” Gohan assumed with a gentle smile. He'd started speaking before he really got turned to face Mirai, though he wasn't sure he'd have said anything different if he'd looked first.  
“Yeah, that sounds good” Mirai said softly, the smallest edge of loss showing in his eyes. Gohan knew better than to pry when he saw this mood settle over Mirai, but he was starting to wonder if maybe, after all these years, that hadn't been such a good thing. They'd been through a lot recently, and he knew issues Mirai had never really dealt with properly had been thrown in his face... From what Gohan could tell though, the being forced to deal with it had only made him stronger.  
“Are you ok?” he asked tentatively, rubbing a thumb over Mirai's cheek, instead of casually 'giving him space' like he would have done before. Mirai's eyes seemed to gain a bit of focus that they hadn't had a moment ago, and then he smiled.  
“It's been a long time since you asked me that...” he seemed to be almost reminiscing. It was Gohan's turn to smile back, though it was a gentle and concerned one.  
“I guess I've realized that I don't want to be that guy, who doesn't learn from his mistakes or ever think there might be a better way of going about things...” Gohan continued to hold Mirai's gaze as they talked. That earned him a nod, and then Mirai closed his eyes for a moment, evaluating his answer to Gohan's initial question.  
“I don't know if I'll ever truly be 'ok', but, on some level, I don't think I really should be...” When Mirai opened his eyes, they were slightly unfocused again, at a degree none but a saiyan would be able to discern, but it was still there. Gohan kept their hands clasped tightly together as Mirai looked around the beach, seeing but not seeing it.  
“We came to a beach not that different from this one to train pretty often... But it's not just disgrace at the end of that line of reasoning, I'm starting to see that now. As long as I keep fighting for the things he taught me-” Mirai's voice uncharacteristically cracked a bit, but to his credit, his eyes stayed dry as he took a new breath. Gohan wanted to pull him into a fierce hug, stroke his back and tell him everything would be alright, but he refrained, understanding it was important to let him say what he could now.  
“Maybe I was just too young to get all of it back then, or maybe I was just a worse student than I even thought” Mirai gave a small, self deprecating chuckle, but moved on with a shake of his head. “I took a lot of the wrong things out of what happened, let my guilt become...well, you know...” Mirai squeezed Gohan's hand, and Gohan nodded sympathetically. “I know now though, it's not a disgrace that I wasn't strong enough to save him, it's only a disgrace if the people I fight to protect don't know that I do it because I love them” he finished quietly, and it was Gohan who felt tears rolling down his face as Mirai tipped his head up to kiss him.  
It was probably the longest conversation they had ever had about the 'other him', but quite the opposite of feeling upset over it, Gohan was overjoyed at the place Mirai had come to. Their kiss was far more intimate than their surroundings, not for any particular lasciviousness, but for what it meant to the both of them in that moment.  
“Come on” Gohan said when their lips broke apart, his forehead resting on Mirai's, “I think it's my turn to make sure you know just what I fight for, and I can think of the perfect clean sheets to show it to you on.”

 

After a week into their vacation on the island, Roane found he was never more than a step away from Taka's company, and that he wasn't in as good of shape as he possibly could be. Not that he was out of shape at all...but he knew how fast he should be able to run a mile, how he should feel after doing an hour of alternating push ups, sit ups, and chin ups, etc. Taka wasn't what he would call obsessive about exercise, they were both military men after all, but Roane was starting to realize his own regiment had suffered while ensuring Gohan and Mirai were pushed to their limits. To be fair though, he'd never had these kind of almost marathon sex sessions before, so he had nothing to compare that to.  
All Taka had to do was look at him with a certain glint in his eye, and Roane would feel the heat inside beginning to uncurl. Where had all his vaunted self control gone?... Apparently right out the window with Taka's moans. There was something to be said for waking up in a hotel room with empty beer bottles strewn all around, a hot young blonde in your arms, and nothing important to do that day or the next. During the beginning of their escapades, there had been casual questions as to how long each other was staying on the island, but nothing in depth or serious. Things seemed to be sort of staying that way, but every once in a while, Roane would wonder what was going to happen between them when his three weeks were up...

It was happenstance, really, that Gohan and Mirai were coming out of their room at the same time Roane was heading up to his. Taka had mentioned to him that he had some meetings he had to go to this day and the next with his manager... Then he made it clear that he fully expected Roane to still meet him for dinner afterward each time, and that was that. So now the red head found himself puttering around a bit aimlessly, though with a larger smile on his face than normal.   
It was that smile that made Mirai think now was as good a time as any to spring the 'reward' he had dreamed up on Roane. He expected it to take a bit of finagling to get the man to 'agree' to receiving it, but after a moment of thoughtfulness, their sergeant actually nodded and said he'd accept... Gohan could have sworn there was the smallest hint of a blush on Roane's cheeks as they all rode the elevator down to the ground floor, but he wasn't about to say anything about it out loud..  
He and Mirai had nothing pressing to do either, so they all headed to the downtown area of the city to pick out a new wardrobe for their commanding officer. Sharp suits and 'business casual' attire were Gohan and Mirai's specialty, but they really wanted to cover all the attire bases, seeing as how Roane hardly owned anything that wasn't olive drab green. It took four different stores' worth of comparing, trying on, and color coordinating before they felt happy with what they had accomplished.  
Roane himself, well, Mirai hadn't exactly pictured him listening and taking their suggestions so to heart when he'd imagined this. He figured it was going to be something they'd have to grudgingly force him into, holding over his head that they were technically his employers, so he had little ground to refuse a 'bonus'... But none of that turned out to be an issue. At the end of their shopping spree, Mirai had all the purchases stored in a capsule for convenience, which he told Roane not to bother returning with a wave of his hand. This time, Gohan was 100% sure it was a blush creeping across their sergeant's face as he thanked them and pocketed it.  
“So, how about we all go out to dinner together, to sort of celebrate and top off the day” Gohan suggested, hoping they would find time to uncover more of why this was making Roane react the way he did.  
“Actually boys, I'll have to take a rain check on that” Roane said, his cheeks twinging further though his demeanor didn't change at all. He did clear his throat a bit before continuing when Mirai gave him a curious look. “I've got a date; so, we'll have to schedule it for some other time” he said a bit more decisively than necessary, his tone militarily clipped and to the point. Both Mirai and Gohan's faces broke into grins.  
“A date, date?” Gohan asked before he could stop himself. Roane's nose flared at bit as he breathed in deeply, but he didn't speak. A curt nod was all they got, as if he was dismissing them, or perhaps himself, and then he turned on his heel and headed off without another word.  
“How scandalous...” Mirai deadpanned, the first to break the silence after they had watched him walk away sort of dumbstruck. Gohan couldn't help it, and burst out laughing, grabbing Mirai by the arm and steering him in the opposite direction from where Roane had gone. He had no problem giving him his space, and Mirai was chuckling as he followed along, replaying the day's events in his mind under a new light.  
“I guess that explains a lot, especially how little fuss we got over the suit” Gohan commented as their merriment died down.  
“I'll say... I was prepared to pull teeth, not be asked which of the season's it colors went best with his complexion” Mirai mused.  
“You made a good call with the dark caramel though” Gohan replied, “It really did look stunning on him.” Mirai laughed at that, shooting Gohan a playful look.  
“Unfortunately, I think he's taken, babe” he teased, and Gohan promptly kissed him in the middle of the sidewalk, daring him to question his loyalty any further with a heat in his eyes that was entirely inappropriate.

The next day dawned peaceful and serene like all the others, but Gohan and Mirai were starting to have a problem. After breakfast, they let their curiosity get the best of them, and sought out Roane's ki. He wasn't too far away, and there didn't seem to be many people around him...perhaps this would be their chance to catch a glimpse of this 'date' he had spoken of the day before. Unfortunately, when they arrived at his location, they discovered he was at the islands' golf course, and he was alone. Roane was in the process of signing up for a full 18 holes, but it didn't stop him from spotting them right away. He waved them over and told the man behind the counter to amend his ticket, that they would be playing with him as well.  
They really had no choice now but to join him, since they didn't want to reveal that they'd show up here with other intentions, not even knowing it was a golf course... Thankfully being an island resort, the place didn't take any particular 'dress code' very seriously, since the two of them were just in shorts and casual shirts. It was a mutual agreement to forgo a golf cart in favor of walking the greens between each hole. They all set off for the first 'par 3' with plenty of time to make it for their appointed tee off. Mirai wanted badly to ask Roane how his date had gone, but he decided to wait a bit so as to not seem too obvious...  
Surprisingly, Roane had apparently played quite a bit of golf before, and both Gohan and Mirai had to use all their natural skill and hand-eye coordination to keep up with him point wise. In between shots, they made small talk and evaluated wind speeds, but it was only three holes in before Mirai saw an opening and just had to go for it.  
“So, how was your evening last night?” he said with a small lilt in his voice, implying it couldn't possibly have been a bad time. Roane glanced over at him and eyed him up and down, as if his posture would give Mirai away somehow, before answering.  
“I had a very fine time, thank you” he said politely, which made Gohan snort just the tiniest bit. He started to brace himself to be come down on for the outburst, but then remembered where they were; which was not 'on base'.  
“Were you wearing your new threads? I have a hard time believing you did but that it only resulted in a 'fine' time” Gohan teased his wording.  
“As a matter of fact I was wearing them, but just how much more than 'fine' my evening was isn't a concern of yours” Roane said blithely. Gohan grinned.  
“So it was more than fine” Mirai joined back in, “Good for you.” He didn't want to push too hard, but he could tell Roane's mood was still mostly playful.  
“Is he cute?” he asked while Roane tried to make a club selection for the upcoming hole.  
Roane sighed as if caught, and put his hands on his hips while looking down at the bag.  
“Extremely. But don't you dare tell him I said that” he followed up with a raised eyebrow and stern look right away.  
“We'll behave, we promise” Mirai said, holding up his hands in a sort of 'don't attack' gesture.  
“Are we going to get to meet him then?” Gohan stepped over to Mirai, giving him a sidelong glance as he did. Roane thought for a moment, seeming to take their request very seriously, and it was then that Mirai began to wonder just how much Roane really liked this guy.  
“I'll give him a call later, around lunch, and see if he's willing to do a sort of double date thing tonight... It could be fun” he decided, finally pulling out a club. He walked up to his shot after that, effectively ending the conversation for now, but Gohan and Mirai really felt like they'd won that one. This day of golf wasn't turning out to be as much of a waste of time as they thought.  
Their minds were changed even further by the discovery that the course had an in-house sauna, and that the use of it was included in with their fees. Roane was done with his shower before they were, and when they entered the steam filled room, they found him laying on the bottom most rest area, with his small towel almost haphazardly flung over his waist. What was it about saunas that made everyone just naturally immodest?... Well, when Mirai thought about it, the heat was probably a large factor there. He and Gohan went to take seats on the row above their sergeant, leaving room for any others who may come along on the other side of the wooden slat structure, but no one ever did.  
Taking their cue from Roane, and the oppressive steam, they sat down and exposed as much skin as possible, finding the small size of the towels provided not to be so comical anymore. Feeling them settle above him, Roane cracked open an eye and gave them a nod as if to approve.  
“Is he a military man, like you?” Mirai broke the silence by asking, having already heard that Roane's apparent boyfriend's name was Taka, when he had agreed to the double date over the phone earlier. Instead of evasiveness, Roane smiled at that question, and sat sort of half up on one elbow to talk to them.  
“Yes, actually. He was under my command for a short time, part of the last batch of recruits I trained as a drill sergeant. It's kind of strange, running into him here so randomly, but we've really hit it off” he informed them, being more talkative than usual about his personal thoughts and life.  
The night before at dinner, Taka had confessed to him that he'd had a hard time in his meeting that day, because he kept feeling unsure about what was going to happen between the two of them, and that having a potential “significant other” might impact some of his choices... Shortly afterward, the two of them had decided to make it official, and just work things out as best they could from there on. It was a relatively easy call for Roane to make, even with the long distance more than likely involved; especially since Taka had frozen and looked like he'd been hit by a bus when Roane walked up to him in all his fashionable glory at the start of the evening.  
“He's not in the service anymore, he actually just completed a season in an mixed martial arts league a few weeks ago, but isn't really sure if that's what he wants to continue on with” Roane elaborated. “I'll tell you what though, working out with him recently has made me realize I've been letting go of a bit too much of my own training.”  
Roane certainly wasn't accusing them of having blame for that, but Gohan immediately noted that with the grueling hours he pushed them through, Roane couldn't have had anything resembling 'down time' in his day to day employment with them. The once a week they had off to basically do laundry could not possibly embody a proper workout regimen for their sergeant. Mirai's thoughts were along the same lines too, but neither said anything in the moment, since it wasn't like Roane didn't get paid enough to compensate for such a restrictive schedule.  
“That's nice he's been in the competitive fighting world too though, he probably knows a lot of what you went through there” Mirai summarized. He wasn't sure what all they would be able to do to help with Roane's scheduling that wouldn't seem 'self serving' since time off for him would be time off for them... He pushed the thought to the back of his mind for now, letting it sit and focusing on absorbing any information Roane was willing to give on his new romantic attachment.  
“He does. Different leagues around the world are all still plagued with the same problems. Though he did fairly well statistically, it's an easy 'job' to get jaded in” Roane nodded.  
“And that sure doesn't seem like your type, the jaded kind I mean” Gohan said, getting up to pour some more water over the heated rocks.  
“No, I don't think it would be” Roane smiled, feeling nice that they would think that of him. “I think you boys will end up getting along pretty well.”

Now that they were officially more than just old acquaintances who had hooked up, Roane was kind of glad that Taka seemed so open, eager even, to meeting Gohan and Mirai. He was already waiting at the restaurant, obviously scanning the crowd for their approach, but leaning back and playing it cool. The three of them arrived together, since they'd all come from the same hotel.  
Mirai got a good feeling about this guy when he saw how Taka's face lit up as he finally spotted Roane in the crowd. He stood up right away, giving a knowing nod to Roane, and reached out to shake both of their hands. Roane introduced him, by his full name and as his boyfriend, then introduced Gohan and Mirai as his “Friends, slash employers, slash subordinates” with a grin.  
“You know, I was a bit jealous of you two up until Roane mentioned you were a couple yourselves” Taka admitted with a chuckle, “He talks about you guys a lot.”  
“Well, my life has basically consisted of nothing but keeping these two in line for a long time now” Roane grumbled happily, taking Taka's hand as they all sat down around the table. Mirai was happy to see the way they interacted throughout the night, noticing more than a few 'glances' and couple-y gestures pass between them. It seemed to throw his own luck in having had Gohan as his for so long in greater contrast than normal (not that he wasn't ever and constantly thankful for his love). Taka seemed like a good, upstanding kind of guy, who smiled easily and wasn't afraid to speak up. Mirai could definitely see what Roane saw in him.  
Later that night when he and Gohan were back in their hotel room, with Roane having gone back to Taka's with him, they discussed first impressions. Not that it was really their place to evaluate Taka in anyway, as far as his appropriateness for Roane, but they both discovered they had developed a strong urge to not see their sergeant, or friend, get hurt. Taka seemed unlikely to do that, and Gohan wondered aloud if they would begin to see the man pop up while at their camp now and then...  
“Just cause we're in isolation, doesn't mean Roane can't have visitors on his days off” Mirai pointed out, “There's nothing in the contract against it.”  
“I know, I was just thinking that Taka does seem to have the personality willing to put out that kind of effort, so that's a good thing” Gohan replied. “He sure couldn't take his eyes off Roane during dinner.”  
“Well, that may have been partly our fault for buying him such a ridiculously well fitting suit” Mirai teased.  
“We are very thoughtful people, aren't we?” Gohan affirmed playfully, pulling Mirai over to him for a kiss. He took a deep breath with his nose buried in the top of Mirai's hair, and exhaled contently. “We can finish this conversation in the morning, right now it's time for bed” he smiled into Mirai's hair, and received no arguments.

Though the slow, easy pace of life on the island was relaxing, after those first 10 days or so, Gohan began to feel a bit listless. They spent a day just lazing around their hotel room again, with none of the outside attractions seeming worth getting that excited for anymore. Then the day after that found Mirai reading while propped up against the headboard, with Gohan sprawled across his lap. He was laying on his back, looking upside down and flipping through the channels on the hotel's TV absently. He kept sighing every 15 to 20 minutes, and Mirai just smiled behind his book, waiting to see how long it would last. Finally the remote was tossed and Gohan rolled over, snuggling his head into Mirai's waist.  
“I'm bored...” he sighed again, more as a statement than a complaint, his words muffled. Mirai grinned and tipped down the pages to see him, running a hand through his hair.   
“We could always have sex” he said casually, getting ready to set the book aside.  
“I guess...” Gohan said in relatively the same tone, as if it was better than nothing.  
“You guess?” Mirai was slightly shocked. Apparently this 'mood' of Gohan's was more serious than he thought... He was not exactly one to ever turn down a romp in the sheets, or one in any of several other places as well...  
“Are you feeling ok?” Mirai asked, smoothing his hand over Gohan's forehead to see if he was running hot. His temperature seemed normal though.  
“Yeah, I'm alright... I just... Never mind, take off your pants” he said nuzzling his nose in between the bottom of Mirai's shirt and the waist of his shorts, and beginning to kiss the skin there. Mirai went along with the change in plans / suggested course of action?... but he filed away their little interaction to investigate further later.

The next day, Mirai had been infected with Gohan's restlessness as well. His leg tapped up and down under the table almost all the way through breakfast with nervous energy. Finally when they had gotten in the elevator to head back up, Gohan shook his head and declared that they needed to go do, something, anything...because this was getting absurd. They were supposed to be on a fun vacation, not cooped up and feeling stir crazy.  
“Race you around the island?” Mirai said hopefully, half joking but also suddenly feeling it would be really good to stretch their legs a bit.  
“Running, or running?” Gohan asked, knowing most of the beaches would be scattered with people, but wanting more than just a casual jog, really.  
“How about running on the beach here, and then running along the back half of the island that's not populated?” Mirai suggested, stealing Gohan's inflections to differentiate between the speeds that were being proposed. When the doors had opened to their floor, Gohan pushed the ground button again, and they were now heading back down while they bargained.  
“So what does the winner of our 'race' get as reward at the end then?” the taller man asked with a mischievous smile.  
“Um, a kiss?” Mirai improvised. Gohan pushed him up against the wall and moved his lips forward until they were a hair's breadth from brushing Mirai's, but without actually being touching.  
“I can have a kiss any time...” he said huskily before backing away again. Mirai rolled his eyes at the drama and smiled back just as playfully.  
“Respect?” he offered in a fake annoyed tone.  
“You know, you're not very good at this 'motivating' thing...” Gohan said as the elevator opened, spilling them out into the tiled lobby. Mirai opened his mouth to ask just how that had become his job, when Gohan suddenly pushed him backwards into the metal box, trying to hit the interior buttons to make the doors close again before dashing away.  
“You little bastard!” Mirai was easily able to stop the doors from closing by jutting his arm forward, since they were programmed to open again for obstructions anyway, and he ran after his fleeing boyfriend with a glint in his eye. He could hear Gohan snickering to himself even while they maintained a normal paced 'chase' through the crowds, until they reached the ocean. Mirai kept increasing his speed until Gohan couldn't run any faster without drawing unwanted attention, and forced him to let him catch up. He pulled along side without a word, and he could feel Gohan keeping an eye on him out of the corner of his vision.  
“I love you, babe” Gohan offered as if trying to pacify him, but his tone was still teasing, as if daring him to really try and get even.  
“I love you too” Mirai said sweetly, looking straight ahead like nothing was amiss at all. Gohan increased the lateral distance between them by a few feet, keeping out of arm's reach. That was fine, Mirai knew how to bide his time... They agreed to 5 laps around the island, but were only on the third when Mirai made his move. Waiting until the last ones would have been too predictable, in his opinion. Right in the midst of their race, he tackled Gohan down to the ground, wrestling him on the sand as they both laughed nearly uncontrollably. Mirai finally succeeded in his goal of getting a hand full of sand down the back of Gohan's shorts, and that brought the struggle to an abrupt end. To be honest, they were both covered in sand from head to toe now after their wrestling match, so the handful of it in Gohan's pants had been more symbolic than anything else at that point. Mirai was actually kind of surprised that he could match Gohan so evenly now, since Gohan had always been the stronger of them, by quite a margin at times.  
“I miss running, and training...getting all sweaty and feeling good because I pushed myself...” Gohan admitted, laying on his back in the sand with Mirai resting on his chest where they had fallen.  
“I do too” Mirai confessed, still enjoying what was left of the rush of blood pumping through his veins. “You know, even though Roane is kind of occupied with Taka now, he did say they've been working out together and stuff...”  
Gohan groaned, putting together immediately where Mirai was going with that.  
“You do realize that's like, completely admitting defeat, right?” he asked, lifting his head up off the sand.  
“You do realize, that you almost turned down sex out of boredom yesterday, right?” Mirai reminded him.

The next day after that, Gohan and Mirai woke up early and searched out Roane's ki signature again. They found him already laying out on the beach, with Taka not far away, presumably getting drinks or something at one of the little beach side stands. The redhead had sunglasses on, resting with his hands behind his head, and was wearing a barely there speedo. Gohan and Mirai both looked at each other in the same moment, raising an eyebrow, but said nothing regarding it.  
“Um, sir?” Mirai was the first to address the silence, causing Roane to tilt his head toward them.  
“Something I can help you boys with?” he asked casually. Even if he'd have left off the 'sir', the supplicating tone in Mirai's voice would have let him know they wanted something.  
“Well, we were kind of wondering what your schedule is like today... If maybe you wanted to get in a workout” Mirai suggested, then quickly added, “Or just kind of tell us what to do, even if you'd rather sit and chill...” He really hoped they didn't peeve Roane off with such a request. Tipping down his sunglasses to look at them over the bridge of his nose, Roane glanced up and down, evaluating them, and then leaned back with a chuckle.  
“Bored already, huh boys?”  
Gohan blushed, but nodded in affirmation.  
“Sorry, sir” Mirai apologized, indeed feeling a little foolish as Gohan had suggested they probably would the other day.  
“Tell you what, I've already agreed to 'get a tan', as much as someone like me can, with Taka today...but if you boys are really desperate, I'll allow you to do push-ups on the beach here next to us, as long as you don't get in the way. You block the sun even once though, and you're out of here” he warned them.  
“Yes, sir!” they both agreed to those terms easily.  
“How many should we do, sir?” Gohan asked as they got into position.  
“Well, according to Taka, a good tan can take several hours of alternating exposures to produce, so how about you guys keep the count, and let me know how it came out in the end” he chuckled, leaning back again.  
Later, when it was decided by Taka that anymore sun would begin to fry his lover, and he began slathering him in sunscreen, Gohan had just passed over 15000. He and Mirai stayed even throughout the session, and were covered in sweat when Roane suggested they take advantage of a workout not available to them on the base, and jump in the water. There were several other, very small, uninhabited islands, scattered around the major one. All four of them ended up diving in together, and aiming for the one that seemed closest as a test run.  
After being used to working out in so many multiples of gravity, Gohan and Mirai didn't really feel much “burn” per se when they were done that day. It still felt good though, right even, to at least be doing something, so they talked to Roane before heading back about repeating the performance. That ended up initiating some negotiations, mostly with Taka, because Roane preferred he be included in his day. It was all worked out in the end though. They would “train” in the mornings as best they could here on the island, then each couple would be free to do as they wished for the afternoons.  
Roane even jokingly hinted about making Taka his “assistant” during the operation, and Taka accepted the position solemnly.  
“It's been a while, but I'm pretty sure I remember how this sort of thing goes... I've never really been one of the people holding the power end of the stick before though, so you might have to give me a few pointers tonight” Taka's face was serious, but his eyes were filled with humor. Mirai was pretty sure most of what he just said was what passed for sexual euphemisms between the two military men...but he didn't feel the need to ask.

For their first official impromptu session the next day, Gohan and Mirai were up at dawn like normal, ready and waiting on the beach. Instead of meeting them on the sand though, they received a summons from a small ski boat out in the water, that was piloted by a familiar crop of red hair. Without another thought, the two of them dove into the water and swam out at Roane's beckoning wave. As they approached, they could see Taka sitting in the boat as well, but before they could board it, Roane stopped them and pointed off to one of the other islands.  
“That's your target boys, last one there gets the bigger rock” he said, starting up the engine. Then he took off with his grinning 'assistant' toward the distant beach. Gohan and Mirai weren't sure exactly what he'd meant with the rock comment, but they were sure it wasn't going to be something easy. By the time they made it over to the jungled shores, they were past the point of debating mentally if they should let the other 'get there first', and both just wanted some dry land beneath them. Gohan ended up being the first to wash up, followed by Mirai, dragging a piece of seaweed behind him. Taka gave them each a bottle of water and commanded that they drink it right then, but once they were done, he “ushered” them farther up the beach to where Roane was waiting.  
Now Gohan and Mirai could see what the two of them had spent their time on while waiting for their arrival. Two giant boulders, out of a slew of them sitting near the edge of the jungle, had been harnessed with chain and rope, ready for the pulling. At this point, Mirai didn't even waste any energy groaning, just headed for the larger one. At least a sort of makeshift harness had been rigged up for them to pull with. They both began hoisting them on, and Taka watched, seeming amused.  
“Up the mountain?” Mirai said, not as if he really questioned what they would be doing, but just not wanting to act without orders. Getting a feel for the tension of the setup, Mirai put his shoulders down and took a few tentative steps as Roane nodded and pointed.  
“Straight to the top boys, and anyone who lets their load fall backwards at all gets a special Greek nickname for the rest of the day” he announced. Gohan had to crack a smile and chuckle a little bit at that, which he felt was probably ok, since they weren't under their same sort of strictness here.  
“Are we having fun yet?” Mirai asked him under his breath, rolling his eyes at how much Gohan was enjoying the reference. They both had their loads moving now as Gohan spared a small amount of breath to answer him.  
“Hey, don't deny a man his simple pleasures” he grunted, adjusting to the weight.  
“Since when is ancient Greek literature simple?” Mirai shot back sarcastically, purposefully putting on a bit more speed to get ahead of his lover. After that it was on, their competitive streaks grasping onto this activity much more firmly than they had with the swimming. It was a pretty dead heat for most of the way up, with Roane and Taka's shouts from their perches on the tops of the boulders seeming almost encouraging. In the end though, Gohan edged Mirai out, and was the first to reach the top. After catching his breath, Gohan turned to him.  
“Maybe since you lost I'll just call you Sisyphus all day anyway” he teased.  
“Oh god, I'm surrounded by nerds” Mirai complained, but he was smiling at the same time.  
“Nerds? Excuse me? Who's the one who invented an entirely new-” Gohan stopped himself before he could mention time travel in front of the others, and blushed visibly at his slip up. Mirai swooped in to save the day though, walking over to him with a saunter in his hips that he usually saved for when they were alone.  
“Now, now, I'd hardly say I invented that. And besides, I thought we agreed not to bring it up outside the bedroom...” he said sweetly, trailing a finger down Gohan's chest and making it seem as though his blush was for an entirely different reason. Roane snorted with a barely suppressed laugh, and Taka didn't even try to hold back, seeing the additional shades of red Gohan's face produced after that. Clearing his throat, Gohan turned back to their instructors after Mirai's winking at him threatened to derail the entire exercise.  
“Uh, aren't we supposed to be training or something?” he grumbled, accepting the repercussions of the 'save' without question, but trying to get them back on course as well.

On the second to last day before they were supposed to head back, Gohan and Mirai could almost see the sad feeling of impending separation settling over their sergeant. The last week or so had given them the chance, while they trained and played together, to see that their two 'instructors' really were amazingly good for each other. Taka was strict and firm, just like Roane, if at times a tad more playful than they were used to. Being on vacation though, even Roane was lax, compared to what they normally expected.  
Mirai felt slightly bad, but at the same time, he knew it wasn't like they had planned this on purpose. They hadn't had any part in planning this, actually. That tiny bit of guilt he felt over Roane not being able to keep his physical prowess at the level he desired also ate at him occasionally too. It all stewed in the back of his mind for a little while before an idea he considered to be of incredible genius suddenly materialized.  
“Hey, Gohan? I think we need to talk...” he said, pausing the man in his efforts to get in the shower that night upon their return.  
“Wow, I know you're not leaving me, but those aren't exactly words that bode well in a relationship... Are you pregnant or something?” Gohan asked, playing off the portent of his word choice with a joking atmosphere. Mirai sighed and shook his head, giving him a wry grin that clearly asked why he put up with this stuff (though they both knew he was joking too).   
“No, I'm not pregnant. I was thinking of suggesting we modify Roane's contract a bit...”

That was how they found themselves quietly making Taka an offer they were fairly sure he couldn't refuse, especially since he'd declined signing with the MMA league for next season, in favor of having a “freer” schedule. After hearing all the details of what they would expect from him as an additional instructor at their camp, Taka leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment.  
“You know, Roane mentioned some of this stuff to me before, but I didn't entirely believe him until I saw you guys pull those house sized rocks up a mountain... Still, this almost seems too good to be true – you're just going to offer something like this to a total stranger?” Taka wondered. It actually seemed a very astute question to Mirai.  
“Well, despite our appearances, Gohan and I are surprisingly well connected. Your background checks out, plus, we like you, and that's as much as we had with Roane when we first hired him too” he explained.  
“Also, we're not total strangers” Gohan added, “Both ourselves and you have managed to survive being Roane's privates, and the boot camp from hell that that entails.”  
“Hm” Taka used the grunt to acknowledge the new information, but didn't take long to process it. “I guess as long as this is an 'at-will' type of employment like you said, then my answer would have to be yes” he said with a grin.  
Mirai could understand with his and Roane's involvement being so new, that he might be concerned with how things would play out being around each other 24-7 for such an extended period of time, but he had faith in their sergeant. If all else failed, and they'd called this completely wrong somehow, they knew they could count on Roane to handle things justly and professionally.  
“Just don't expect any favors because of some sort of shared misery once things get going” Taka admonished them.  
“Oh, of course not, if anything, we'd ask you be extra strict, knowing first hand that it's good for us in the long run” Mirai eased his concern with a returned smile himself.  
For the large part though, both Gohan and Mirai expected things to go quite smoothly, even without having actually consulted Roane about the additional staff... But now Roane would be able to hand them over to Taka for certain time periods throughout the day, and they felt confident he'd be very close to getting as strict as Roane, based on what they'd already witnessed.  
Really, the biggest unknown in their minds was if they would ever see their sergeant again during the times when their days off rolled around. And you know what they say about curiosity.


	7. Second First Impressions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More than just their new instructor is being put to the test after they get back from vacation. Someone will pass with flying colors… I wonder who it’ll be…

They of course had to tell Roane that they were bringing on an additional instructor for the remaining term. His eyes narrowed, but before he could say anything, Mirai assured him that Taka had been put under the same contract and requirements that he had. Even so, Roane remained skeptical.  
“Look, we'll admit we definitely took what we thought would be your preference into consideration regarding who was hired” Mirai explained, “But the idea of lightening your load was already in our minds before we knew how serious you and Taka were. We didn't do this expecting any favors or special treatment from you either. If anything, it's only because we trust you to be strict and professional no matter what that we went ahead and offered it to him even though he's your boyfriend.” Roane seemed to accept it more after Mirai made his little speech.  
“So, nothing's changing with the routine, except that I won't be the only one enforcing it 24-7?” Roane still had the smallest hint of disbelief in his voice.  
“Exactly. If we wanted you to be more lax, we'd just tell you we wanted to renegotiate your contract, not play games dancing around the issue” Gohan said very matter of factly. That seemed to settle it.

When Taka arrived “on base”, Gohan and Mirai could tell from the way he was dressed (in uniform), the set of his shoulders, and the way he walked toward them, that he meant business and was ready to give them hell. Perfect. They both realized they were smiling and quickly wiped them off their faces, lest they give either of their instructors a reason to reprimand them. Taka and Roane both saluted each other, but exchanged no other greeting, and then turned to their charges.  
“Today we'll be going through our normal routine, so Taka can orient himself with the basics of our little set up here. I'll debrief him while you boys are in the gravity chamber, and then we'll all go for a nice tour of the facilities together afterward” Roane informed them. As they made their way over to the building that housed the GR, Mirai wondered if sex would be involved in this 'debriefing', but didn't dare ask. He supposed if they did do anything like that, the smell would be a give away...not that he was in a position to say anything if they did.

That first day back was pretty standard, Gohan and Mirai were made to run around chasing the golf cart for the better part of the day while Taka was shown the base. Since they were so much more used to it now, it wasn't a huge amount of effort for them. The interesting part was at the end of the day, when Roane informed them that tomorrow they would be solely under Taka's direction. The blonde smiled and nodded, obviously they'd talked about it already, but Mirai didn't think he'd have had the guts to do something like that.  
It was obvious that Roane was testing him. As a new instructor coming onto his camp, it seemed perfectly fitting, but as his lover... Well, Mirai did tell Roane that he trusted him to treat Taka just like any other instructor while they were on the clock. Both he and Gohan wondered though, if they had fully prepared Taka for this kind of treatment. Since they'd had an easier day than normal, the two of them were falling asleep in each other's arms, and had a chance to talk a little before nodding off.  
They didn't take it as any indication that Roane's word would be breached, but they would definitely take advantage of any opportunity to snuggle that came along. It was obvious the real test would be tomorrow, and Mirai wondered if Taka's treatment of them wasn't up to par, whether Roane would step in right away, or let the day play out and then address Taka in private. Damn it, he just had too many thoughts about other people's relationships running through his head now. Burying his face in the pillow, he sighed to himself, drawing Gohan's attention.  
“What's wrong babe?” he said, rubbing Mirai's back briefly.  
“Nothing... It's just... Ugh, this is why I would never make a good matchmaker. I don't want to have other people's issues running through my head all the time.”  
Gohan smiled hearing that, and pulled Mirai's face out of the pillow so he could kiss him.  
“Do you need me to distract you?” he asked. Mirai looked at him levelly, though he already had decided he wanted more than just a snuggle since they had the energy.  
“Well, now that you mention it, you are pretty distracting...” he grinned back, and was easily made to forget about Roane and Taka for the rest of the night.

When the lights of their barracks flooded over them before the morning alarm had gone off, Gohan had the presence of mind (these days) to know that this was no mix up. Thank god they also knew better than to fall asleep without their boxers on for any reason...  
“Atteeeeeeention!” a fairly familiar voice rang out, echoing off the empty space of the rest of the hall. Both Gohan and Mirai were flinging themselves out of bed already, having been woken by the lights, and having faster than normal reflexes. Roane looked slightly amused, standing behind Taka, to find them both in the same bed, but it was only because they knew how to read the little flash in his eyes, not that he would ever smile at them or anything. Right about now, Gohan was thinking that the 'supposed' ease of their simple run yesterday may have been a ruse.  
Both of them were standing, backs straight and arms raised in salute, while Taka glared at them.  
“Dress out!” Taka barked, and aside from letting the new command speed through his brain as he pieced together a tentative meaning, Gohan also marveled at how he could get his voice to hit just that right pitch to make the whole place seem filled with it. He didn't dare ask questions though, on Taka's first day, so he was going to go with the assumption that they were being ordered to get their clothes on a fast as humanly possible. Which was pretty fast for them, considering they weren't human.  
Mirai noticed Roane's slightly raised eyebrow at the order, but he immediately began pulling on their normal camp uniform. That was what Gohan was doing too, he saw, and figured at least if they were wrong, they'd both get punished together. As soon as they were done, they stood back at attention, understanding this was going to be serious, and Taka looked them over with an appraising gaze.  
“I'm just going to mention here, since it didn't come up somehow before, I haven't been using the same strict command system we had in the military with them” Roane said, staying back while Taka was inspecting them. Their blonde instructor looked briefly back to him, and then nodded.  
“Well, I suppose getting into uniform isn't that far of a stretch from 'dress out', so I guess you boys aren't as dumb as a bag of hammers, congratulations” Taka said almost condescendingly. Now that brought a smile to Roane's face.  
“We'll stick to normal lingo then, but I still expect your obedience to be immediate and swift, do I make myself clear?” Taka asked then, his manner somehow more offending to Gohan in the way he was speaking to them than Roane's proximity or volume had ever been when they first started.  
“Yes Sir!” they both replied right away. And then the fun began.  
“It has come to my attention that the Gravity Chamber hasn't been cleaned once since you two set foot on base, is that correct?” Taka mused at them, as if they had been assigned to clean their room and had purposefully 'forgotten' under the bed.  
“Yes Sir!” they both answered, groaning internally. Then suddenly Taka swooped in and grabbed the back of Gohan's neck and shoved him down and towards the door at the same time.  
“Get the fuck over to the supply room now. Are you waiting for a hand fucking written invitation?” the blonde seethed in his ear.  
Roane stepped out of their way since he was partially blocking the door, and Mirai caught the tiniest swell of pride puffing up their sergeant's chest as they scrambled out it. He wasn't looking at them though, he was looking at Taka. This may have been a bad idea.

Gohan had never cleaned under heavy gravity before. It was obvious that it was getting increased on them as they went too, because after thirty minutes or so, the plastic bucket they'd been using to hold the soapy water flattened to the ground like it had suddenly melted. They weren't stupid enough to think that it was any reason for them to stop though. Gohan was determined to use and spread that puddle of water around as much as possible before making an issue or any request of their instructors regarding it. He supposed metal buckets would work ok, for a while, but even the weight machines in the other room of the chamber had their limits.  
When there was finally nothing else to be done for it, Gohan raised to his knees and looked up to the ceiling briefly before getting to his feet and heading for the door. He would never presume to think that either of their instructors would fetch new supplies for them. He made it about halfway to the door when the room's Level I fire suppression system kicked in, drenching them head to toe as the sprinklers came to life. Gohan could take the hint. At least they hadn't triggered the powdery spray used for electrical fires... Gohan tried to keep a positive attitude as he got back on his hands and knees to continue scrubbing. He kind of expected the rain to stop after a few minutes, after there was enough water for them to keep cleaning with, but it didn't.  
Gohan wasn't sure the floor would pass a bacteria test after being mostly just dosed with water as they scrubbed over it with their brushes, but he knew that wasn't the point. Just the sprinklers alone would have carried away most of the loose dirt that had accumulated, if this was really about cleaning. So Gohan let his mind wander just a little while the water dripped off of them in streams, and they scrubbed methodically. After a while though, his skin started getting pruney from the exposure, and his fingers became especially raw from gripping the brush. It had been probably an hour or so since they were turned on, before they finished.  
Taka shut the water off, and stood in the now open doorway.  
“Thank god we were able to find a way to hose you two down after the state we walked in on this morning” he tisked, and when Gohan bristled, he laughed.  
“Get your sorry asses over to the other side and empty it out” he said with a chuckle, as if they weren't even worth yelling at, “That equipment isn't going to clean itself.”

In the dark, Gohan and Mirai wiped down all of the exercise machines on the cement outside that were normally in the second room of the gravity chamber. Taka went from one to the other of them, inspecting their work with a flashlight that neither of them had access to for the cleaning itself. It resulted in a lot of re-done sections, though, Gohan was sure they'd have been made to do them all two or three times over with or without light to see by.  
He tried not to, but Gohan found himself coming back to Taka's comment about hosing them down several times and stewing on it. It wasn't that he was offended by the implication that they had been dirty, because they actually hadn't showered. As he fought off a yawn, he realized it was because of the little inflection Taka had put on the word 'state', almost as if he were putting them down because of how they had gotten dirty... Or rather, implied that the dirty part was them waking up from the same bed. With it looking like dawn was no where near in sight, he tried to push his mind clear of that particular train of thought, because it was going to be a long day.  
Once they finished their task, Taka set them to cleaning out the other room before the equipment was put back in it. As soon as the door slid closed behind them, they were immediately pelted with the spray of water this time. With a sigh, internally only of course (because you could never be sure just how much the cameras picked up), they got to work. By the time they finished with the second room, and were hauling equipment back into it, the first blush of light was beginning to grace the skies.  
“Chow time boys, get your asses in line and over to the mess hall” Taka ordered them once everything was in place. They jogged over, obviously eager for this task.  
“Easy boys, easy, you're not going to be eating dick, just breakfast” Taka somehow managed to make his barking tone sound like a snigger. Mirai slowed his pace as it was being indicated they should do, and rolled his eyes at the crudeness of the comment, since their instructors were behind them. Gohan's teeth clenched, but he said nothing. They weren't given any other orders between there and reaching the door of the hall, so Gohan went right in, holding the door for Mirai and then letting him go ahead of him. Instead of heading right for the table, he ducked over to the window and peeked through the blinds.  
Taka was leaning against the golf cart, and Roane against him, and Roane obviously had more of his tongue inside Taka's mouth than not. Was Taka honestly trying to kid anyone?... Gohan frowned and hurried to the table to take his place, ignoring the raised eyebrow Mirai gave him. They didn't ever really talk during meals anymore, because of the time constraint. It had been weird while they were on vacation to think as they were sitting down in a restaurant that they didn't have to inhale the food in front of them as quickly as possible.  
When the timer rang and they were heading back out, Mirai asked him, “Hey, does Roane eat anything while he's standing out there?”  
“Just Taka's face for now” Gohan said, trying to make a joke of it, but he felt something ugly stirring in his chest at the thought that the man was somehow ridiculing them for being “gay” when he was himself too...

Gallons and gallons of white paint greeted them after breakfast.  
“Frankly, I can't believe you were let to go away and on a vacation with your base left looking like this. Unacceptable.” Taka stood only a few feet from them and dished out orders while they stayed at attention. Roane seemed to take the comment in stride, and so Gohan assumed it was just part of the bravado...maybe that's what this all was, and he was just getting worked up for nothing... Painting every building on the base for the rest of the day didn't sound completely horrible, though he knew his tired arms would definitely be feeling it after not too long. Then Taka stepped in close to him as they were going to retrieve the buckets, and said to him in a quiet tone,  
“Now I know it's not painting your usual rainbows and heart shaped lollipops, but I'm fairly sure you two can still handle it, since it's all white.”  
“Thank you, sir” Gohan said in a flat tone, careful to keep all emotion out of his voice. He quickly finished gathering the things they needed and headed with Mirai over to the first building. Roane and Taka seemed content to watch them from a little distance, staying with the supplies in the shade on the golf cart. Gohan felt Mirai grab his arm as they were opening the cans, using this rare moment to speak a little more freely than normal.  
“What's wrong?” he asked, able to feel Gohan's ki and that it was troubled, even if it wasn't showing on his face.  
“It doesn't bother you? The comments?” Gohan asked back, a bit disbelievingly.  
“That? It's just military trash talk” Mirai shrugged his shoulders as they poured the paint out into pans for the rollers.  
“We're not actually in the military though” Gohan pointed out, rolling his implement in the paint a few times to get it ready. Mirai sighed, preparing his the same way and then beginning to apply the paint onto the side of the building in overlapping “V” patterns, to make sure it covered well.  
“Why is it bothering you so much?” he asked quietly.  
“It's just, they're supposed to be on our side, right? When it comes to that sort of thing” Gohan put the lids back on the half full cans and then turned to the wall.  
“I don't know what to tell you” Mirai shrugged his shoulders and kept on painting.  
Feeling a little surge of … something … Gohan took the paint and began applying it in a large arc in front of him, scowling at the wall, until Mirai looked over and saw him. He made a strange noise in the back of his throat.  
“What, are you doing?”  
“Nothing” Gohan muttered hastily, and began covering over it correctly with the “V” pattern. He didn't glance back behind them to see if Taka had noticed his little impromptu rainbow, and just kept working, taking deep breaths and focusing on clearing his mind. The paint fumes made it a little difficult though.

Roane had his arm over Taka's shoulders as they watched from the imaginary distance of the golf cart. After all, it wasn't like they couldn't still see it all from here.  
“I'm impressed” Roane said softly, seeing Gohan's little act of defiance.  
“Do you think he'll end up crying, or just try to take a swing at me?” Taka murmured, his hand partially covering his mouth to obscure his words from reaching the working men.  
“Well, it's only the first day, I don't think it'll get quite that far... But since you haven't ever experienced extra gravity first hand, I'll warn you, if that man ever takes a swing at you, you better fucking duck.”

They were mostly left to themselves until lunch, and Taka never said anything to him about his little rainbow stunt, if he saw it... Maybe he'd been too busy making out with his boyfriend behind them to notice. Gohan was just beginning to agree with Mirai and think he should try and let it all go, when Taka made a jab about the paint spatters they had here and there on their clothes looking decidedly like something else. His agitation was officially upgraded to upset now. Mirai didn't say anything about the continued irritated flavor to Gohan's ki. He thought Gohan was kind of blowing this out of proportion, but he wasn't going to tell him that.  
After lunch they went right back to painting, and the large number of buildings on base, combined with the fact that Taka wanted them all done, not just the ones that they used all the time, meant they still had a long way to go. Roane and Taka moved the cart around throughout the day, following the shade and their progress from building to building. Gohan was having a hard time staying awake at this point. Taka must have woken them at like a minute after midnight once his day started, and Gohan vaguely wondered if he'd have them try to keep painting in the dark after the sun set. His arms ached like they were on fire, and his eyelids kept trying to slide downward of their own accord. Mirai didn't look to be in much better shape either.  
Once they finished the building they had been working on when dusk hit, Taka called an end to the sprucing up. Probably because the permanence of painting was much more difficult to re-do if botched in the dark than simply wiping down an area again while cleaning. Gohan made a little mental note to be glad that they at least got to clean the gravity rooms this morning with the lights on. He was kind of grasping for straws at this point.  
Then Taka did something that Gohan just couldn't ignore, couldn't bite down a reply to, wouldn't 'stay in line' for. He was shamelessly checking out Mirai's ass as they put the paint cans away, right in front of him, completely open about it and grinning like a madman. Taka even had the gall to wink at him once he noticed. Gohan glared back at him.  
“No. That's where I draw the line. That's not ok” he said tersely, stopping what he was doing and going over to Taka.  
“Really, is that so? Actually, you're right” Taka said, soaking up an eyeful of Mirai again as Gohan walked toward him, “It's not ok, it's much, much more than just, 'ok'...”  
Gohan shook his head, his power raising in a small jump that caught Mirai's attention right around the same time their conversation did. As he saw the beginnings of it, all he could think to himself was, 'really, Gohan?'...  
“Knock it off” Gohan's tone was no-nonsense.  
“What? Oh come on, all fags are whores, everybody knows that. You don't mind sharing, right?” Taka's eyes had a conspiratory twinkle in them. Gohan's power started making the air around them crackle with energy, and Mirai stilled and watched him very, very carefully.  
“Don't you dare. If you lay even a finger on him, I'll make you regret it” Gohan seethed, his voice getting louder as he spoke, becoming almost a yell. Taka didn't back away though.  
“I think Mirai can probably fend for himself... Or do you just need the reassurance of your 'manhood' that you'd get from beating me up?” Taka asked, practically batting his eyes in challenge at him.  
“What's wrong with you? It's not alright to treat us like this just because we're in a 'military style' of training. Hell, even if this is how they 'really do it' in the military, it's still not ok” Gohan was gesticulating with one arm, his whole body tense with anger.  
“Do people normally ask for your permission before stereotyping you? What kind of fantasy world have you been living in? Since when do I have to care what you think?” Taka scoffed right back at him.  
“You're supposed to be on our side, that's why” Gohan's voice was extremely frustrated.  
“Why does me being 'on your side' as you say, sexually, I'm assuming, mean that I can't like making fun of fags?” Taka said matter of factly. Gohan was shaking his head in little side to side motions as Taka spoke those words, and he erupted at the end of it with a shout.  
“Because it's not right! It's unfair!”  
“You know, blind anger can get a man killed on the battlefield, whatever reason that started it” Taka's demeanor didn't really shift when he said it, he was still being cocky and condescending even though he was switching to 'the moral of the story' now. Gohan actually turned half away from him, making a noise in his throat that said Taka was being ridiculous. Mirai knew it was probably because anger was considered key for saiyans in battle, but Taka and Roane didn't have that information.  
“You know, for someone who's used to taking a cock up the ass, you're sure not getting the point of this little exercise very easily...” Taka added, sighing as if Gohan was being dense, but getting his jab in at the same time.  
“Fuck you, I'm not even the bottom” Gohan spat out at him, his fists balled at his sides.  
“It's life's job to bend you over and fuck you, why would you be given an easy time about it?” Taka tried driving the point home again, but was still as crude as ever about it.  
Mirai just stood there with a faint blush on his cheeks and a small frown on his face, not liking the way that just came out of Gohan's mouth, but not really feeling like he wanted to jump into the argument.  
“You don't understand, you're just a human” Gohan turned the rest of the way and stormed off, heading for the barracks. All he knew right then was that he wasn't so worn out that he couldn't kill Taka with one punch.  
“Hn... Roane was right to save you for last, you were a lot easier to break” Taka said to his retreating back, his voice dripping with derision. Gohan started to turn around, a crater opening beneath him in the ground from his power sky rocketing. Mirai didn't know exactly what it was that Gohan thought he was going to do, but Mirai flew in between him and Taka now that this just officially got out of hand.  
From the righteous anger burning in Gohan's eyes, Mirai could tell he hadn't gotten through to him by just grabbing his shoulders. Mirai went super saiyan without another though, tightening his grip and dragging Gohan back to the barracks before he could do any real damage. That did get Gohan's attention. If he powered up all the way, Gohan could get out of the merely super saiyan hold that Mirai had on him right now, but he let himself be drug away. Mirai sat him down roughly on the bed, and Gohan gave a little huff of a pout.  
Mirai slapped him, hard.  
“First off, fuck you. And secondly, what the fuck was that about?” he asked, making sure to stay close and keep Gohan from being able to get away. Gohan rubbed his cheek and looked to the side while frowning. “They have no right to do that” he answered hotly, indicating the jabs and treatment for being gay, as if Mirai didn't already know that part of it. Coming to his own conclusion then, Mirai decided to address things in a different way.  
“The rage we were shown as kids isn't some sort of last ditch back up plan, Gohan, you're not like that. You don't need to keep a little piece of it locked away just in case...what would Piccolo say if he saw what happened just now?” Mirai chided him. The power drained out of Gohan almost instantly when he heard that, his brow losing it's anger too.  
“It's not like that, I don't do that. I'm fine on the battlefield, that's different.”  
“So far. But what if the next monster or creation or whatever thinks it's doing the universe a favor by wiping out anyone who doesn't fit into it's version of “right”? You know there's plenty of people here on our own planet who think that way about guys like us” Mirai added more gently, making Gohan fidget as he sat down next to him. “You can't just decide you don't want to deal with it because the only people who could've angered you about it so far have all been weaker than you.”  
Gohan sighed and put his head in his hands, and Mirai sat down next to him, putting an arm over his shoulders.  
“I know it's not the exact definition Taka's using, but it's the one that's relevant... Don't let me be your weakness, Gohan, please” he whispered. Gohan leaned in without thinking and kissed him.  
“It's so much better when the person you love is your strength. I know I'm just finding it out myself, but it's true, Gohan” Mirai said, no tears, just reassurance in his voice.  
“How do you deal with it so easily, doesn't it make you mad? They have no right... I mean, I know nobody does, ever, but, I just I wasn't expecting it from him...” Gohan ran his fingers through his own hair in frustration. Breathing in slowly, Mirai thought about it for a moment.  
“Well, I guess I've just got a thicker skin for it...I mean, I was born with purple hair, Gohan. Even my freakin' eyelashes are purple, everyone's just kind of always assumed I was a little more “girly” than “normal”... Then it morphed into “gay” as I got older... I mean, it's understandable, really, I'm just too damn pretty” he added with a grin to soften the mood. Gohan smiled at that let Mirai hold him for a moment before trying to speak again.  
“I guess I feel betrayed” he finally admitted.  
“I know” Mirai murmured softly. “But do you feel betrayed when my dad does that kind of thing? I mean, getting on us for stuff he does too?”  
“That's different, that's Vegeta” Gohan gave a grunting laugh.  
“Don't cut him excuses because he's an alien. He's just as smart as any of us. He knows better, he just doesn't give a fuck” Mirai countered, making Gohan acknowledge it.  
“No, it doesn't bother me... I guess, because I'm just used to it” Gohan sighs, having to admit that Mirai was right.  
“Exactly. But you're such a hot, god damn hulking chunk of a man, that no one in their right mind has ever dared to tease you about being gay before” Mirai poked him in the chest to accentuate his point.  
“Now you're getting me hot flustered instead of mad flustered” Gohan grinned sheepishly, his normal temperament shining through again.  
“Hey, not my intention” Mirai said, pushing him away with a mock amount of effort. They settled down after the moment ended though, and then Mirai had one more issue to bring up.  
“Is that 'I'm not the bottom' thing something we need to talk about too?” he asked quietly, looking at Gohan levelly with those intense blue eyes.  
“Oh god, Mirai, no, you know I didn't mean it like that” Gohan's eyes widen a bit, and he put his arms around him again, hugging him close. Mirai nodded and let Gohan kiss his temple.  
“It was just so out of character for you, it kind of startled me” Mirai said, looking at him out of the corner of his eye as they embraced.  
“I was just angry at him, I didn't mean it” Gohan said in apology. “God, what does that even say about me that I assumed he was, and thought it would get back at him, make him upset?” he groaned. “You know I don't think about us that way, it doesn't mean anything if a person does or doesn't.”  
“They're doing the right thing then, aren't they?” Mirai wanted to hear him say it, that he understood the necessity of facing this issue. Gohan took a deep breath and angled his forehead to rest on Mirai's shoulder, closing his eyes.  
“Yeah, I guess they are.”

Soon after, Gohan and Mirai headed back out, kind of surprised that they hadn't been come after while in there. Pretty much immediately they were given demerits for the outburst and for running off. Neither Roane or Taka looked too upset though; it was all delivered very matter of factly. Gohan noticed to his further embarrassment that Taka's voice and demeanor are completely back to normal now.  
Later, when he'd lived down some of his shame at losing his temper like that, he would try and remember to ask the blonde just how he had played him like a fiddle so well... Roane ended the 'session' there, even though apparently Taka had been counting his day as “24 hours” and he still technically had quite a few left... Gohan made a small guess, to himself, that it was due to the intensity of the subject matter, and the closeness to home with which it hit all of them.  
“I'm sorry, Sir, for my outburst, it won't happen again” Gohan apologized sincerely, his cheeks coloring while they still stood 'at ease' in the aftermath.  
“I'm sure it won't” Taka nodded to him, “But you're still going to be punished for this incident.”  
Gohan nodded once, curtly, because they'd already been assigned a 30 minute earlier wake up (again), and this time with no hot water for their showers for the duration of the two weeks.  
“You're going to be given extra, aside from the group one, because of your specifically bad behavior” Taka informed him, looking him up and down for any sign of displeasure with that fact.  
“Of course, Sir” Gohan said, accepting it readily.  
“Do you think that's fair, for you to get more than him?” Taka asked, just out of curiosity, not going back into jerk-mode.  
“It'd be more fair if he didn't get any” Gohan said, looking straight ahead, because truthfully, Mirai hadn't really done anything wrong.  
“Welllll, he did still leave without my permission, even if it was to stop you from trying to kill me” Taka grinned at him, “And we can't just let those kinds of things slide... Anyway, starting tomorrow, it'll be your job to sweep up at the end of the day after we're done.”  
Sweeping? That didn't sound like much of a punishment to Gohan, being used to scrubbing and cleaning bathrooms etc. on his hands and knees.  
“Sweep? Uh, what exactly do you want me to sweep, Sir?” Gohan asked for clarification, knowing they used a lot of different areas throughout the day. Taka raised an eyebrow at him.  
“The base” he informed him, as if that had been an obvious implication of what he'd already said. Roane laughed, coming up and clapping Taka on the shoulder.  
“You heard him” he grinned at Gohan, “Now, let's get to dinner, I'm starving, and I think we could all use a little smidgen of down time after the wonderful job Taka here did today.” As they moved away, Roane slid his arm over Taka's shoulders, since he was kind of the perfect height for it after all, and beckoned Gohan and Mirai to follow them with a hitch of his head. They didn't normally all eat together, but Gohan was grateful for the untypical show of solidarity from their instructors, just for today.

“I can't take all the credit though, babe, since I was acting largely on information you had already gathered and just kind of augmenting it as I went” Taka made sure Roane didn't over-praise him while they mostly ignored the guys over dinner.  
“Still though, I figured we'd see some cracks, I didn't think you'd actually get him to lose it on the first day” Roane looked at Taka admiringly as they conversed.  
“Well, you still laid a lot of framework here beforehand, I just delivered the final blow” Taka pointed out, shoving Roane's shoulder with his own playfully.  
“I didn't know that whole 'hypocrisy' thing would be such a kill shot” Roane continued talking about Gohan like he wasn't even there, to Mirai's amusement. The two of them remained largely silent on their side of the table, wisely.  
“You did say he was one of those team-player, 'fairness and justice' types of guys” Taka switched to looking at Gohan just then, “And knowing how you guys acted with each other when you weren't on base helped too. I had a hunch that your confident exterior out in public was partly you daring anyone to say a word about you kissing the man you loved. So I figured you wouldn't expect it coming from me” Taka grinned. Gohan nodded as they ate, having the grace to blush, and Taka just chuckled and went back to his own plate.  
“I do have a question though, on a slightly different subject” Roane spoke up, setting down his fork and addressing their underlings, “I think it's about time for the two of you to really come clean here” he said, propping his elbows on the table and folding his hands like he was not bargaining, “Just how much 'more than human' are you guys?” His gaze popped all the colorful, child-like balloon animals that were their illusion of secrecy with one glance, and Gohan knew there was no way of getting out of this now. Especially with that comment he'd made earlier about their instructors being 'just' humans...  
“Oops?” Gohan said to Mirai, turning with his shoulders hunched kind of sheepishly.  
“Double 'oops'” Mirai said, not looking phased, or pleased, and continuing to eat. “Well, get explaining buster” he said after a moment, not going to make it any easier for him. Gohan sighed and tried to keep it brief, since he was still tired from the day, and they didn't have all night.

After two or three days of their demerits schedule, Gohan found himself developing blisters from the sweeping even on his already calloused hands. The cement that ran from one building to the next, and over large swaths of open space, was a bit more of an undertaking than just tidying up the kitchen. Thankfully after the first day, it wasn't as bad, because there were no longer years, maybe decades, of accumulated dust and dirt and debris to be swept away. Mirai even offered, and did, massage his aching arms and back a little after that first time, though he was tired from his own day too.  
Gohan knew he was the luckiest man alive, to have a lover as forgiving as Mirai.  
It was a bit of a shock to them both though, when one day, Roane was supervising him sweeping and suddenly called Mirai over as he was walking back from the showers to the barracks. There was really no such thing as 'off the clock' here on base though, unless it was a contracted day off, so Mirai jogged over immediately.  
“Yes, Sir?” he stood at attention, his hair still damp but he was fully clothed and all.  
“Mirai, I'm going to have to ask a small, one time only favor from you, since lover boy here is taking so long to finish up his task” Roane said, dismissing Mirai's posture with a wave of his hand.  
“Of course, Sir” Mirai answered, moving to stand at ease. He wasn't under the illusion that favors were anything other than orders coming from Roane's mouth.  
“Stay here and supervise Gohan, make sure he doesn't slack off while I go take care of a few 'time sensitive' things” he indicated, no hint of a joke even peeking into his mannerisms. Mirai was at a loss for words.  
“Thanks, I knew I could count on you” Roane said, slapping him on the arm and turning on his heel. As he strode away, both of them watched his back get smaller with a look of disbelief.  
“Um...” Gohan heard Mirai kind of clear his throat, and turned to look at him instead.  
“Shouldn't you be sweeping?” he said, as a reminder, still sounding a bit shocked himself. Gohan immediately bent back to his task, using the large push broom with a practiced skill by now. An almost embarrassed silence settled between them while Gohan worked, but somehow it seemed to lighten as he went along, instead of grow worse.  
“Gohan” Mirai said his name to get his attention, and Gohan looked up right away, but kind of froze in position, not really sure what he was supposed to do...go over to him? Salute? Mirai didn't ask for any of those things though, instead he motioned downward with his head, indicating the portion of cement he'd just worked on.  
“You missed a spot” he said softly, his eyes still kind, but waiting to see what the response would be. Gohan straightened and their eyes caught for a moment, then he looked back to the area Mirai had indicated. It's state of actual cleanliness, he knew, was irrelevant, as it was with pretty much everything on this base. He walked back to the beginning of the section to start again, and as he passed Mirai he paused, looking kind of down and away from him in deference, and said,  
“Sorry... Sir” before proceeding. The shine he saw in Mirai's eyes as he got to it was worth the little extra humbling though. Any amount of anything, was always worth Mirai. 

They only cuddled that night, and really, it was exactly what they both needed for right then. In the middle of them just staring into each other's eyes for a while, Mirai's suddenly widened a bit, and then he burst out laughing.  
“What?” Gohan said, slightly confused.  
“No, no, not you, I just... Suddenly I wondered why Roane would have done that, I mean, it didn't seem like he planned it at all... And then I realized, according to the schedule the two of them kind of worked out, his 'shift' would have ended like 20 minutes before that” Mirai prompted him, causing Gohan to raise an eyebrow.  
“Well, he did say he had something time sensitive to do... Taka could fall into that category” Gohan smiled, humoring him.  
“Yeah, but I mean,” Mirai was trying to explain why he found it so funny as he continued to snicker, “Thinking about something time sensitive, I just suddenly pictured Taka laying there ready for him, with like ice cream melting on his chest while he waits” he burst into a fit of laughter again, and this time Gohan joined him. After their mirth died down a bit, Gohan chose a teasing tone to tell him,  
“You know, I'm not so sure I'm ok with you fantasizing about our sergeants' sex lives...” he bumped their noses together without actually kissing him to add to the teasing atmosphere.  
“Hey, you know there's only one man I ever really fantasize about” Mirai said, letting him tease, letting Gohan be Gohan. He waited for the dark haired man to kiss him like he wanted, looking from his lips up to his eyes and back again a few times while he did.  
When Gohan kissed him, it was sweet, and full of understanding.


	8. Curiosity Killed The Cat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirai and Gohan discover there is both a time to mind their own business, and a time to speak up.

Hindsight was one of those things that people always talked about being 'bittersweet'. And well, sometimes even just bitter, depending on the choices that had been made. It was different than fate or destiny, in that it wasn't some outside force that had guided the actions, but usually your own...usually to a poor, or indifferent at best, outcome. Standing at the bottom of an anti-tank trench, shoveling furiously while winds strong enough to push a man over swirled around him, Mirai was having an almost poetic encounter with hindsight.  
It had all started, well, Mirai wasn't actually sure how it had started (since he and Gohan didn't pry), but he was pretty sure the root of it boiled down to the moment Roane and Taka had first locked eyes on each other at that island bar. From that point on, a series of very questionable decisions on all their parts had lead them to this crossroads. Mirai was normally the kind of guy to take his share of the guilt, be responsible for his actions, and he knew that he was partly to blame... But on the other hand, he had no way of knowing just how far the two of them would carry this, and neither did Gohan. They weren't innocent of the situation, but fuck if they had known what they were getting into.  
The really bittersweet, complicated, make you sigh in frustration part of it was, that Mirai could see where each of them was coming from. He knew Gohan understood too, but neither of them could say anything, because they weren't supposed to know what was really going on. So they followed orders, and kept their heads down, and hoped the storm didn't blow the base down before the two of them worked it out. And also before the current wind blew them all away either.  
Unfortunately, after what was quite a long time actually, the honeymoon ended for their sergeants, and Gohan and Mirai just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time to hear when it did. It happened to all couples, and was “Major Point #1” of why Mirai was kicking himself, because he knew that, he knew better, really, he did.  
Even though it was their day off at the time, when the plumbing went haywire in the laundry room, the two of them went around to the back of the building to fix it themselves. Doing laundry by hand was something Gohan had never been fond of. After shutting off the water main, Mirai had just laid down to crawl under the structure and check out the pipes when they heard Taka and Roane making their way to the building as well. Gohan was about to go out around to them to tell them the water wasn't working, but something in the tone of their voices stopped him from interrupting.  
Things became kind of muffled when they first entered, but apparently they moved closer to the back of the room, and towards the open window there as they went.  
“-s just one pair” Roane was obviously asking him something, by the tone of his voice.  
“No” Taka replied, like he'd already said it several times before, and it was getting more and more clipped with each usage.  
“Really? Come on, you can throw in one pair with your clothes” Roane asked again.  
“Do. Your Own. Laundry.” Taka made it a statement, not a request. Roane sighed like he didn't see what the fuss was about, and Gohan instantly knew the man was headed for trouble.  
“Why not?” Roane asked.  
“Maybe I don't have room for it in with mine” Taka said in exasperation, and a little condescendingly too.  
“For not even one pair of pants? I find that hard to believe” Roane replied with a bit of a drawl.  
“Maybe you should go suck your own dick instead, cause I find that more believable than me doing your laundry” Taka said angrily, like there was much more to this issue than the mere washing of clothes. Gohan looked down to Mirai, who was still laying on the ground as they inadvertently eavesdropped, giving him a sort of 'deer in the headlights' look. Mirai just shrugged his shoulders, his eyes a little wide too at the rather dangerous position they found themselves in. He knew exactly how heated arguments over 'just simple domestic' stuff could get when you were first working out a relationship. That was part of why he and Gohan had just decided to hire a housekeeper, back in the day.  
“Is that an either/or option? Cause I can make do without a blow job a lot easier than I can without pants” Roane fired back, his voice clearly fed up with the response he was getting to his small request. Gohan paled and shook his head without realizing it. Poor Roane, he was a dead man. It was the kind of moment when one would expect to hear a slap ring through the air in response, but this was Taka they were talking about. The dull thud of what Gohan pictured as a hard right connecting with Roane's face was what actually followed, along with a stumbling noise.  
“Fuck you, Flynn” was then spoken low and menacingly by the blonde. There was no slam of the door though, no muttering of obscenities as Taka left in a huff. The man must have continued to stand his ground afterward, however silently, because it was Roane who left, walking with a pissed off gait, and a pair of pants wadded up in his hands. Gohan got down on his knees beside Mirai, motioning for him to go under first like they had planned earlier. Since the moment was over, it would be realized soon by Taka that the water wasn't working. He wanted both of them to be under the building where they probably wouldn't have heard anything by the time that happened.  
Once the two of them knew that their instructors weren't getting along like before, it became more and more obvious as the weeks went by. Even if they hadn't overheard the scuffle, the lack of Roane's arm draped around Taka's shoulders 70% of the time probably would have let them know something had changed. It was at that beginning stage that any offerings of help or relationship advice (on their time off only of course) might have had a chance of being well received, but Mirai and Gohan both felt too guilty about what had happened to just volunteer. They had been together themselves for, what, a little over 25 years now? Certainly they were qualified to offer a little mediation, even though they didn't claim to be perfect either.  
The thing was, they got thrown off a time or two also. It wasn't some steady free fall downward, at least, it didn't look to be. There were some days, even multiples of them at a time, where the way Roane and Taka looked into each other's eyes was full of love, times where they held hands again and once that Taka even let Roane twirl his finger in his blonde hair absently. But then the mood would turn sour again, and finally both Gohan and Mirai resolved to just not get involved and stop worrying about it. It wasn't their relationship, it wasn't their business, their sergeants needed to work it out just like any other couple.  
Yeah, that was what they had thought back when they were still naïve enough to think it didn't affect them.  
The first time Mirai remembered specifically wondering if the orders they were being given actually had to do with training, Roane had just started his shift and found out that Taka had given them a surprise assignment he knew nothing about. Well, he didn't say out loud that he didn't have foreknowledge of what was going on, but from the irked posture and facial expression he wore the rest of the afternoon, Mirai could make the guess. They never knew what they were going to be doing from day to day, so they had no way of telling if anything was out of the ordinary themselves.  
Their only indication of the fight that probably taken place later that night was the amount of gravity they were subjected to in the morning. It had been a long time since Gohan had had his cheek pressed against the metal of the floor so soon after waking. At lunch that day, both of them decided that if the training got extra hard for a while, it really wasn't such a bad thing. They were also loathe to stick their noses in their sergeants' personal lives for fear it would only make the training unbearable in retribution.  
Little did they know they were already on that path.  
Roane was surprised again that following day, at the degree to which they were tired since they had been subjected to the extra heightened gravity earlier in the morning. Not the type to let up on them for any reason, he simply pushed and pushed them through the rest of the day until they finished his tasks, even though it put them hours past dark and dinner and all the things that waited at the end of the day.  
It wasn't until they'd gone through a full week of what would have been considered a severe crackdown, if looked at objectively, that they realized saying something wasn't really risking much more than was already being done to them. That day off at the end of the week was one of the hardest ever to pull themselves out of bed for. Not just because of their sore, aching bodies, but for what they knew awaited them in the form of trying to strike up those conversations. In the shower once they were awake, they decided discretely cornering each of their instructors separately was their only hope.  
This was were Mirai made what he considered to be a huge mistake, looking back, because “Major Point #2” of why he was kicking himself was that in reality, people stereotype. Mirai was not abnormally short, he was taller than his father after all, but he would admit he was usually one of the shorter people in the room. Unless he and Taka were around each other, because they were relatively the same height. And thanks to Gohan, it had already been publicly established which particular role he took most of the time in bed within their relationship.  
When Mirai chose Roane as his instructor to 'broach the subject' with, he didn't think about any of the ways in which he and Taka were similar before hand, only that he thought he could help him understand where Taka was coming from. You know, for someone who used to run the most successful company on the planet, he wasn't very observant sometimes.  
As soon as Mirai said the word 'talk', he could see Roane visibly stiffen.  
“About what?” he asked tersely, because he'd have to have been a fool not to know already.  
“Well, about anything you want to...” Mirai tried to be as kind as he could, to not push too much.  
Roane's eyes narrowed, and his rigid movements stilled altogether.  
“Did he ask you to come here?” he wanted to know, a fiery anger burning in his eyes.  
“What? Of course not” Mirai said right away, finding that to be an almost ludicrous suggestion, considering what was going on. “I just wanted to make sure you were alright, that's all.”  
Roane looked away and rolled his eyes in continued anger as he stood. His only other comment after that was,  
“Mind your own fucking business” ...and then he left the room. Mirai had heard Roane swear, had it directed at him plenty of times, but the tone in his voice seemed to cut right through Mirai in a personal way this time. He felt kind of offended himself now, though he let it go as he headed back to the barracks to wait for Gohan. He knew Roane was going through something really rough right now, and Mirai didn't take the lack of opening up personally. He only hoped that Gohan was able to fare better, get at least some sort of response from Taka.  
Again, with the naivety.  
The problem with Gohan trying to talk to Taka was that an additional issue compounded them having any sort of real conversation. Even though he was just as worked up over the whole thing, Taka knew the two of them less than half as well as Roane did. Gohan couldn't blame the look of utter disbelief on Taka's face when he suggested they talk. He wasn't about to try and push through it with any sort of commentary on how he and Roane were taking it out on them though, because he knew Taka would instantly see it as whining.  
Zero for two, they both decided to just rest and deal with the extra difficulties for now. It wasn't as if their lives were in danger or anything.  
The next day Roane came up to them early, like he used to, just to hang around watching Taka 'supervise' them in the good ol' days. They could tell by his cold demeanor that this was not going to be like those were. Being only a couple meters away, they could easily hear everything while they worked. Roane came up and casually stood next to Taka, close enough to talk normally, but not touching.  
“You've been deviating from the regimen” Roane said bluntly, not turning to look at him.  
“Where necessary” Taka said equally a flatly, his lips pursed in annoyance.  
“There is no 'necessity' for that, stick with the plan that's been outlined” Roane told him.  
Taka was the one to break and look over at Roane first, anger furrowing his brow.  
“The last time I checked, we were both under the exact same contract here. So don't you dare think you can just tell me what to do. We're equals, and if I think an extra 25G's of gravity are in order on a certain day, it's my business” Taka said adamantly. The look on Roane's face said he clearly didn't agree with such a simplistic statement, considering his seniority, but contractually, Taka was right. He was under no obligation to obey Roane's orders.  
“From what I saw, it was more like 50” Roane huffed in response, since it was his only ground to stand on.  
“Even if it was 100, who fucking cares?” Taka looked like he wanted to say so much more than that, but he was obviously holding back.  
“I care, because it interferes with what I have planned for after that” Roane said like this was so easy to understand that Taka must be an idiot to not have figured it out.  
“So?” Taka replied evenly, clearly having figured it out, and clearly having done it on purpose by the tone of his voice. Roane finally looked over at him now, but Taka turned to look back at Gohan and Mirai when he did that, avoiding Roane's gaze. So maybe he at least felt a little bad about having been that petty.  
“Boys, go grab some pickaxes from the storage shed and meet me on the north side of the base, near the airfield” Roane instructed them smoothly after he was done staring at the side of Taka's face.  
“What do you think you're doing?” Taka asked him through clenched teeth.  
“Since neither of us is 'in command' here, then you can't say I'm not allowed to start them early on their other tasks” Roane said with a nonchalant tone. Mirai and Gohan had both froze when the conversation got to that point, and when they didn't immediately head for the storage shed, Roane raised an eyebrow at them. With a jump, both of them headed for it right away after that, and Mirai could see Taka storming off out of the corner of his eye. Mirai didn't have to be psychic to tell exactly where this was going to end up, but as usual, life put a fun twist on things once they actually reached that stage. A handful of interrupted assignments later, spread out over the course of days, Gohan and Mirai found themselves keeping silent watch to their sergeants' dwindling civility.  
When Roane would order Gohan to dig a hole, Taka would order Mirai to fill it back in. When Taka had Gohan building sandbag bunkers, Roane made Mirai disassemble them immediately. Gohan certainly didn't mind the work, didn't even minded that his and Mirai's was counter productive... It was the atmosphere that they had to perform it in that bothered him. Tension and frustration sang through the air at all times, and it made Gohan get a headache by the end of the day, from frowning so much himself.  
It wasn't until they were assigned to dig the trench that things got out really out of control though.  
Roane had taken them out past the fence that surrounded the base, and was bringing them up to speed on just how to dig the kind of trench meant for stopping tanks, when Taka suddenly appeared. They got into an even more heated debate than usual, because apparently Taka had been planning on having them dig this, and now Roane was trying to under cut him... Gohan was just so fed up at this point, he didn't even care. He picked up his shovel and shot Mirai a look, then started digging without any further instruction or actually being told to start. Eight feet straight down, then taper the other side to approximately a 30 degree angle or so...that ought to do it.  
Mirai followed Gohan's lead and began digging next to him, effectually ignoring their 'superiors', who were trading insults at a high volume. To add to the confusion, a storm was rolling in along the horizon. There was no thunder yet, but they could feel the wind that preceded it buffeting them all around. Suddenly Roane and Taka's words caught in their ears as being important again.  
“Then I'll just have Gohan dig to the west!” Taka yelled, and Roane yelled right back.  
“Fuck if I care, Mirai can dig towards the east then! And whoever reaches the other side first, wins!”  
Wins?... The other side? Both of them looked up at that, not liking the idea that they were going to be set against each other in this particular way. Maybe they should have been paying more attention to what was being said after all. As he came and stood over him, Mirai noticed that Roane looked like he was about to cry. Shit. He didn't know what to do since his sergeant was glaring hard enough to start a literal fire with his gaze at the same time. So he just kept digging. Stealing a glance at Taka, since he and Gohan were still right next to them, Mirai thought the blonde looked more than a little queasy, but Gohan said nothing either.  
The only thing either of them could think to do was get it over with as quickly as possible. With super-human strength, they could have had the entire base surrounded in a nice deep trench within minutes, if not seconds, using their ki. But it was sort of an unspoken rule that they themselves used, that no 'cheats' like that were allowed in their day to day training. They were quite accustomed to digging by now, but not even they could finish a project of this magnitude in one shot.  
Mirai raised his ki just a little, enough to get Gohan's attention, and dug faster. He felt Gohan mimic his actions almost right away, and got the feeling even he didn't mind skirting the rules a bit themselves, since they were so blatantly being abused by their commanding officers. The rules were that was...the fact that they were still letting them was kind of on Gohan and Mirai, but, again, hindsight made this much clearer when they were reaching the end of the trench.  
Sheets of rain had come and gone, and come again, with the wind never letting up in the middle of the deluge. Then the rain stopped for a good while, but the wind didn't. Even down where they were digging, because of the shape of it, the wind blew along the run of the trench in gale force gusts. Roane and Taka could barely stand anymore, but they stubbornly refused to stop. Gohan knew both their pigheaded instructors were as soaked to the bone as he was, and he wouldn't be surprised if they got sick after this.  
Maybe he and Mirai would make them both take care of each other, or not, as their own kind of revenge.  
Lost in his own ticked off thoughts, Gohan didn't really register the sound he was hearing until it was too loud to ignore. At the same time, Taka came sliding over the edge of the wall toward him, fear plain on his face as he yelled,  
“Get down!”  
It sounded like a freight train was barreling straight toward them. Taka's exclamation barely reached him as a muffled couple of words before they were snatched away entirely by the wind. Instead of taking his own advice, Taka took off running down the trench, down to the end Mirai and Roane were at. Tremendous ripping, crunching noises were accentuating the deafening rumble now, and Gohan's stomach sank as he felt the ground itself began shaking. He felt Mirai powering up at the same time that he took off after Taka himself, and neither of them was a moment too late.  
In the forced calm of their raised, half saiyan auras, Roane and Taka were safe from the tornado that wrought havoc on the rest of the landscape around them. As the four of them stayed pressed against the side of the embankment on instinct, wooden beams and chunks of brick, things that looked suspiciously like bed frames and a couple tires all flew around them in the air. It was too late now to do anything but wait for it to end, keep their human friends safe, and wonder how much of a base they'd have left to go back to when it was over.  
Even as the winds finally died down, and the debris began floating back down to Earth, none of them moved for a long time. Roane and Taka were wide eyed, their hands clenched tightly together with their backs up against the wall. It was a spectacle no human had probably ever witnessed before, to see the inside of such a violent storm without being taken up into it and blown away themselves.  
Once the immediate danger was gone, Mirai sighed and let his power fall back, with Gohan following. It was only then that he realized he was still holding on to his shovel. Tossing it down, he sighed, not even sure what he was doing with his life anymore, and then he heard Gohan begin to chuckle. A smile spread over his own lips before he even looked Gohan's way, because he knew he was laughing at him, and he didn't care. It was funny. Through rescuing Roane, flying over to meet Gohan and Taka, and helping to shield everyone from the storm, he'd held onto this stupid shovel the whole time without realizing it.  
He began chuckling himself as Gohan's turned into full-on laughter, and suddenly instead of shaking his head at the ground, Mirai was in Gohan's arms being kissed. It was a pleasant change. When they were done letting the stress of the situation leak away through the kiss, Gohan rested his lips against Mirai's forehead.  
“I wonder if we have anywhere to sleep tonight...” he murmured.  
“We...could always...go home” Mirai softly suggested with a sigh, hesitant to bring anything like that up, but feeling like it was fast becoming a real option. Gohan pulled away from him a little, so he could see Mirai's face.  
“Is it really that bad?” he asked seriously, smoothing out Mirai's hair for him with gentle fingers.  
“I don't know... It's just that, and now this, and well, I guess, I'm...kind of tired” Mirai said softly. He could see in Gohan's eyes that he wasn't ready to give up, didn't want to 'leave', and Mirai didn't either. But he just didn't know what was going to happen from here on out. Both of them looked over to their sergeants at the same time, and both sergeants looked away from watching them when they did. Taka blushed, and Roane crossed his arms over his chest. They'd let go of each other's hands already, and it was a shame.  
“You know what, screw this” Gohan let go of Mirai and moved over to Roane, who raised an eyebrow at his approach. Gohan didn't give him a chance to say anything though, and put his hand on the back of Roane's neck, forcing him to go along with him on a little walk to the other end of the trench. Mirai's eyes were wide, but he didn't laugh at the display, instead turning to Taka, who was equally as dumbfounded by the gesture.  
“Why don't we give them some privacy for a few minutes...” Mirai said, nodding with his head for Taka to walk with him in the opposite direction. The blonde hesitated, looking after Roane and Gohan again, and Mirai decided to help him make his decision more quickly.  
“Under your power or mine” he said matter of factly, letting Taka know he really didn't have a choice. As they set off, Mirai realized their anti-tank trench really did look like it was in the middle of a war zone with all the debris they had to step over. Taka didn't look particularly ready to talk, so Mirai thought about how best to get this going for a moment as they walked.

Heading the opposite direction, Gohan could feel the tension and fight in Roane's body as he pulled him along, though the man said nothing the entire time. It wasn't until they reached the spot where the digging had stopped that Roane opened his mouth.  
“You know, you've got a lot of-”  
“Shut up” Gohan said decisively, pointing his finger in Roane's face, making a surprised expression fly over it. “Let's put aside all the games and contracts and who employs who for a minute here. Talk to me, Roane. Why have things gotten this far?” Gohan asked him pointedly, standing back and waiting for an answer. Roane's face softened a bit, but not nearly enough.  
“Is this the part where you tell me you know exactly what I'm going through?” he asked, sighing non cooperatively.  
“No. Are you kidding? Just because we both love a person who happens to be a man, doesn't mean our experiences were at all similar” Gohan said, “In fact, I can guarantee they weren't.”  
“So how are you supposed to help then?” Roane snorted and seemed a bit defensive... Gohan gave him a flat look, and sighed.  
“Do you love him? I mean, there's no point in me pushing you through this if you're already done” he retorted, speaking to the issue instead of Roane's posturing. That got his sergeant's attention. Gohan let him think quietly for a few minutes, and Roane glanced at him every so often, like he was on the verge of speaking but just couldn't bring himself to yet. When he finally did, it was in a frustrated cry that erupted from his throat.  
“Yes, ok, yes I love him! It started out just being head over heels and all that, but then I really fell for him, Gohan... And now... It hurts so bad... Shit, I don't think he even gives a fuck anymore. If he did love me before, he doesn't now” Roane made a disgruntled noise, his face heating up and an embarrassed blush giving away his discomfort with talking about the subject.  
“How do you know that?” Gohan asked, pressing him a little.  
“I just...do. He doesn't act like he loves me anymore, like he even cares at all” Roane sounded completely dejected. Oh god, he didn't feel loved? Could it really be that simple?... It was obvious to Gohan that Taka was at his wits end, and incredibly hurt by Roane's actions, but Taka wouldn't be hurt if he didn't care.  
“Uh, ok, I know this is going to sound incredibly sappy, but just bare with me for a moment... Have you ever heard about these things called love languages, Roane?...”

Taka tapped his foot in irritation, looking at the field of wreckage like it had personally offended him.  
“Look, let's cut to the chase here,” Mirai said, having made up his mind, “Have you realized yet what this is about?”  
“What?” Taka looked at him like he'd lost his mind.  
“I mean, are you just mad at him all the time, or have you realized the root of why already?” Mirai extrapolated. No longer feeling embarrassed or like he had a place to mind, Mirai was able to easily spot quite a few issues and mistakes on the walk over, and he was going to use all of it that he could to get through to Taka. A long sigh came from the blonde, but it took him a moment to speak.  
“I know why...” he said sullenly, “You think because your relationship's so perfect, that it makes you qualified to give advice?” When he registered what Taka was saying, Mirai just chuckled.  
“It's not perfect. But it's damn close. And the reason it is, is because we've both been swallowing our pride and making it work for longer than you've been alive, sonny” Mirai added the moniker for extra emphasis. Taka quirked an eyebrow at him.  
“Look, don't give me that crap about it not being possible, we already told you, our fathers aren't human. For the record they don't look any older than we do, but that's beside the point. What I want to know is if you've told him what the root of your irritation is already.”  
“Yeah...” Taka said right away, but then he hesitated. “Well, I mean, mostly...”  
Mirai took a turn to raise an eyebrow at Taka.  
“I don't know how he could not understand from our arguments that I don't want to be his bitch” Taka said bluntly. It was a valid point.  
“The problem when people get worked up though, is that things get muddled, you aren't thinking clearly... You need to tell him exactly, word for word how you feel. Maybe, uh, tone it down a little so it's not so inflammatory, but you get the picture” Mirai told him.  
“And if I do that, we'll live happily ever after?” Taka said, more than a little edge of sarcasm in his voice.  
“No, if you're able to do that, you'll live a life filled with difficult conversations. The part they don't tell you when you're young is, that you're going to anyway. It's just that if you do it of your own accord, you get a chance at not having to do it alone.”  
Taka really seemed to take in his words, at least, his shoulders relaxed and he rubbed his face with his hands.  
“You know, you should have been a poet or something” he said with a sigh, giving Mirai a look that had just the smallest amount of tease in it.  
“Hey, I've been through enough shit that I could have been, I'm certainly qualified” Mirai grinned.  
“Oh yeah? I didn't realize the CEO life was so harrowing” Taka snorted, both of them smiling now.  
“Well, that's just a recent thing, only in the last decade or so... My childhood was, well, we'll just say pretty fucked up. Warn torn country, people I loved getting killed left and right, being a child soldier, all that...then after the fighting was finally over, my mom died just a few years later from lung cancer... I mean, that was all a long, long time ago, I'm not asking for pity or anything, I'm just saying, it's quite a bit of perspective to carry around with you” Mirai was quick to add, realizing how such a casual summary of his life story sounded to other people.  
“Wow... And you seem like such a nice guy, so normal” Taka said, half joking, half serious. Mirai just couldn't help it. He looked away and up at the sky.  
“Well, I wouldn't say nice... I have my moments... I was separated from Gohan for a long time, for what we thought was permanent. When I did end up coming back, he was married...” Mirai looked at Taka out of the corner of his eye.  
“Married? No fucking way...” Taka was shocked.  
“Yes fucking way... And I broke that shit up” Mirai said, a gleam in his eye that said he had no regrets. Taka's eyes widened, and a grin crept across his face. He slowly began shaking his head from side to side, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.  
“And what about Gohan?” he asked, quite curious now.  
“Gohan? Gohan is a nice guy. He's a fucking super hero.”  
Taka chuckled and nodded, going quiet for a moment.  
“Roane... he's a nice guy too” he said after a moment, almost to himself, but Mirai felt like answering him.  
“Yeah, he really is.”  
“The kind of guy that's worth putting up a fight over... Even if it's just against myself” Taka seemed to conclude.  
“Well, you shouldn't ever change for someone” Mirai interjected, “But if you're changing with them, then it's ok.”  
“Right... I'll keep that in mind...” Taka trailed off, his eyes focused on something behind Mirai. Feeling with his ki before he even turned around, he could tell Gohan and Roane were approaching them. The conversation seemed to be at a good stopping point anyway.

Obviously there was more going on between Roane and Taka than Roane just not feeling like Taka loved him. Having hit on it though, it was easier for Gohan to see now why Roane had been reacting the way he was. This had escalated quickly over things that probably started out minor, but neither of them handled correctly.  
“I've never done this before...” Roane admitted to him, after their brief introduction to the different ways people express love. Gohan nodded and squeezed Roane's shoulder, making the red head sigh.  
“I've wanted to be in a relationship, I mean, who doesn't want to be loved? I just, was never in the right place, at the right time it seemed... And then I met Taka, and suddenly I didn't care. I was leaving that island in only a few weeks, going back to the middle of nowhere, and I didn't care about timing or how difficult it would be” Roane was sitting on a chunk of debris, holding his head in his hands and pulling at his hair in frustration. Gohan was reminded of how young Roane really was in that moment, but he didn't say anything.  
“How am I supposed to find out what his love language thing is without sounding like a complete sentimental moron?” he sighed. They had already established, through Gohan's observations, and a little introspection from Roane, that his was 'acts of service'.  
“Now don't be mad” Gohan said as a preface, earning himself a questionable look from Roane. “Hey! I said don't be mad” he reiterated, and Roane rolled his eyes and dropped the look.  
“I actually have a pretty good idea of what his is, but not because I know him well at all like that, it's just because I'm pretty sure it's the same as mine, which is physical touch” Gohan said quickly, pretty confident in his guess but not wanting to upset Roane by knowing something about his boyfriend that he didn't. Roane took a deep breath, and let it out slowly as he measured Gohan evenly with his gaze.  
“You think so?... You might be right...” he admitted, thinking back to his interactions with Taka.  
“I don't think I ever saw him looking more content than when your arm was over his shoulders” Gohan pointed out, “Though, while you're working this out, I'd advise against going too strong on the physical stuff, just because it can be misconstrued sometimes, you know” Gohan wanted to give these two as much of a chance as possible. He really wanted to see Roane happy, and Taka did it for him, they just needed to get back on the same page.  
Roane nodded, knowing what Gohan meant, and replayed a lot of their arguments, as well as successful communications in his head too. It was like he could see the self destructive loop of himself getting offended over Taka not wanting to help him out, and then himself withdrawing physically from Taka a little more and a little more each time as clear as day now.  
“Uugh, I'm such an idiot” Roane muttered to himself.  
“You're not an idiot, just young” Gohan said, chuckling. Roane gave him another 'look', but it was not of the same caliber of his previous ones. He sat up a bit, no longer holding his head, and looked around as if evaluating everything anew.  
“Do you mind if I ask, what's Mirai's?”  
“That's fine” Gohan said, smiling to think of his amazing lover, “It's quality time.”  
“How is that different from acts of service?” Roane seemed a bit confused.  
“Well, an act of service can be something the person you love has done without you, like, baked you a cake, or done a load of laundry for you. But quality time, it's just being with each other, spending time together, you don't even really have to do anything” Gohan explained.  
“Seems like your two go pretty good together” Roane commented.  
“Yeah, it has made some things easier over the years, but not everything... Like this boot camp thing” Gohan smiled to himself.  
“What do you mean, this falls under easier, or harder?” Roane asked.  
“Both. For Mirai, I mean, this is all one long quality time bonding session. For me though, it's a lot harder not getting all the little touches I normally would throughout the day... But, he makes it up to me, so it's ok” Gohan winked.  
“I'm not sure I needed to know that” Roane said with a grin.  
“I think you kind of already did, the walls in that hotel room weren't exactly very thick” Gohan grinned right back. Both of them chuckled a little bit, and the dwindle into silence afterward wasn't forced, just relaxed. Gohan had one more thing he wanted to make sure they talked about though.  
“So, you do realize though, it's going to be more difficult for you with your language, to make sure that Taka doesn't feel like you're trying to subordinate him, when all you're really wanting is to feel loved.”  
“Yeah, I thought about that... I guess... I'll just have to tell him. I can't see any other way around it, and I sure as hell don't want any other messes like this to happen again.”  
“Oh, they will” Gohan made sure he understood that deciphering this love language thing wasn't a panacea, “But if you're paying attention and building up a good foundation of love and trust and all that, then when the issues do come, like you accidentally make derogatory remarks about them in your anger at someone else, then there's a much better chance of them forgiving you.” 

Gohan stopped a little ways back from Taka and Mirai, holding Roane as well with a glance, until Mirai turned around. He could tell they had still been talking, but he didn't want to interrupt if there was anything important left to say. He figured Mirai would turn around once they were ready. It was almost immediately that he did, so things must have wound down with them too. They walked toward each other, and as if by silent agreement, Gohan and Mirai both kind of moved away to give them space.  
Gohan was delighted, and he was fairly sure the blonde himself was too, to see Roane gently reach up to cup Taka's cheek. Taka closed his eyes, as if unable to believe this was happening, and when he opened them again, Roane immediately said, “I'm sorry” and stroked his thumb over Taka's skin.  
“For?” Taka asked, looking nervous.  
“For making you think I didn't see you as an equal” Roane said softly, but without hesitation, “I do, and you are” he added, but that seemed to be as far as he'd thought ahead. Taka certainly didn't seem to mind. He had a small smile on his face now, and his eyes closed again as he leaned slightly into Roane's touch.  
“I forgive you. And I'm sorry too...I could have handled it a lot differently” he admitted.

Gohan and Mirai left earshot just about then, deciding their sergeants were going to be fine, and heading back towards what was left of the base.


	9. Resolutions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Author's Notes: All good things must come to and end, but for Gohan and Mirai, they have the chance to choose something even better for next time.

About an hour and a half after the tornado passed, Gohan and Mirai were kicking around the scrap heap that was left of the gravity chamber. At least the mess hall and the barracks were still left standing, virtually untouched even. Very little else was though, the damage ranging from a missing roof on the supply room, to complete annihilation of the barber shop. Most of the buildings that were gone had been superfluous to their use of the base, but the field of destruction was made infinitely more stilling by it. Mirai could see the path that had been cut, just catching the structure that housed the gravity rooms and then cutting a swath through the unused part of the encampment.   
Actually, it probably would have been worse if they'd been on the base at the time.  
Roane and Taka were finally making their way over to them at that point as well, and the level of danger they had all been in (or well, mostly just them as humans) was beginning to sink in. Their hands were clasped back together though, so Gohan and Mirai took that as a good sign. Roane stopped next to them and bent down to pick up a piece of display screen, still attached to some random wires and components, looking at it almost fondly.  
“So what does 'SSJ' stand for anyway?” he asked, as if to break the heavy mood that was settling over them.  
“What?” Gohan looked at him with a frown, wondering how he'd ever come across those initials.  
“It was in the programming, base settings and stuff... I saw it while I was putting around one day” he explained, letting the piece of junk fall back down to the ground.  
“Oh, well, it's the abbreviation for 'super saiyan', but in my dad's native language... Uh, it's a long story” Mirai sighed, rubbing his forehead.  
“What's a super saiyan? If you don't mind me asking... Looks like we've got a while anyway” Taka said, surveying the damage in a glance and then bringing his gaze back to Mirai.  
“The blonde thing I do, it's, like powering up to a new level” he tried to explain concisely.  
“And there are four of them?” Roane asked and added, “Levels, I mean, according to the programming anyway, right?”   
“Four? She made it go up to Four?” Gohan said in disbelief, turning to look at Mirai, “She's trying to kills us.”  
“Well, she was kind of pissed that we were leaving in the first place...” Mirai commented, shaking his head in disbelief as well.  
“Why, what's wrong with Level Four?...” Roane asked, sounding hesitant. It was an unusual thing to hear in their sergeants' voice.  
“Well, there's nothing wrong with it, it's just, that's like, crazy, insanely strong...” Gohan missed the small smile on Roane's face after he said that, because he was covering his own with his hands. Mirai saw the smile though, and squinted at him suspiciously.  
“I think you boys don't give yourselves enough credit” Roane said casually, “Because you've been working under Level Four for a while now...at least, what?, a month or so?” Roane turned to Taka as if to confirm the setting.   
“Yeah, you actually were going to run out of juice on the thing pretty soon, as far as us being able to keep increasing it steadily on you” Taka grinned, seeing how pale Gohan and Mirai looked as they took this all in.   
Without any verbal agreement, just looking at each other briefly, both of them began to power up. Roane and Taka staggered back a step or two as it intensified, and the two demi saiyans rose to the air automatically, to keep them from being blown away in a moment. They kept their eyes on each other, but Gohan could see out of the corner of his eye that their sergeants had left to take cover by one of the still standing buildings. Good.   
Dirt and debris began being forced back by the power of their combined ki, creating a wind that was just as strong as the storm's had been. Gohan, having been privilege to the ways of the Kai's, no longer needed the transformation to achieve those levels of power, but he watched as Mirai surged through them. All he could think was, beautiful. When he finally reached it, Gohan was strangely turned on by Mirai's version of super saiyan four, though his most prominent feeling was one of contentment that he was still just the slightest bit stronger than his blue eyed lover.  
The last time he remembered power feeling this good, was when Cell had first fallen to him. With a deep breath, Gohan tested the upper boundaries of his limits, and then let them fall back away, down to normal. Mirai didn't follow him right away though, looking at him with his tail twitching back and forth for a moment in the air. He advanced on Gohan slowly, hovering just in front of him for a moment before finally powering down. Gohan grabbed him around the waist as soon as he did and pulled him close.  
“Show off” Gohan growled in his ear, his voice still thick with power. Mirai gave him a peck on the lips and a wink, but didn't take it any farther than that. They did have an audience after all.   
If only they'd known just how much of an audience that little move had just gotten them.

Back on the ground, Gohan decided a hug was in order for Roane. The man gave a small huff, but was clearly not as annoyed as he pretended, patting him on the back as Gohan thanked him. Mirai and Taka just shook hands for now, grinning at the sentimental lugs they called theirs.   
And that's when Mirai heard a voice behind them that he recognized all too well.  
“Heeeeey, uh, sorry guys, but I need to borrow you for a minute...”  
Mirai felt the palm on the flat of his back at the same time, and there was no time to let go of Taka, they were all just suddenly standing in a strange room, and he could hear his father arguing loudly with someone off to the side in a language he didn't understand.   
Well, fuck.  
Since their fathers were still supposedly off gallivanting around the other side of the galaxy right now, Mirai had a pretty strong feeling that that's where they were now too. Taka looked disoriented, but Mirai knew it would change to shock soon.  
“Where did you just take us, Dad?” Gohan was asking, having let go of Roane.  
“Just stick together, we'll all be fine” Mirai said in a quieter voice, directing it at Taka, who nodded slowly.   
“Oh, we're on the planet I told you about before, the one with the fruit that tastes like meat” Goku started talking away, scratching the back of his head while he watched Vegeta fight with the other guy. He went on to mention it was the sort of hastily designated base of operations for the battle they were still fighting.   
“Right... So, why did you need to 'borrow' us?” Gohan had a feeling he knew what was coming, but hoped for Roane and Taka's sakes, that things weren't too serious...yeah...  
“Ah, it turns out the home planet of the army we've been trying to track down is a lot stronger than we thought!” Goku's eyes practically shimmered.   
“They're god damn cyborgs, that's what, only the modifications they've made to themselves are all out of katchin. So on top of being impossible to detect, they're virtually impervious too” Vegeta's surly voice suddenly spoke up from behind him. Whoever he'd been arguing with, probably the leader of some planet or maybe a god or something, had backed down and was looking kind of pale, and giving other people orders now.  
“How the fuck did you get so strong?” was the next thing out of his mouth, eyeing the two of them with hostility.   
“Uh, gravity chamber, and these guys' helping to keep us in line” Mirai tilted his head in Roane and Taka's directions.  
“Hn. I could have kept your ass in line just fine all those years... Did you modify the chamber?” Vegeta asked, showing an untypical amount of interest in Mirai, but a typical amount in how he'd gained his current strength.  
“Yeah, Gohan and Bulma did, kind of an experimental thing, after you guys left” he made sure to add, not wanting to get her in trouble for not having offered the technology to her husband.   
“I'll have a talk with the woman about it when we get back then” Vegeta said tersely, turning to the moment at hand again and pulling up a hollow projection of the enemy's encampment.   
“Oh, by the way guys, this is my dad, Vegeta, and that's Goku, Gohan's father” Mirai motioned to them for their sergeants' benefit. Goku immediately started shaking hands, but Vegeta just kept on like Mirai hadn't even spoken.  
“The main problem is that none of these weaklings we allied ourselves with can produce ki blasts strong enough to get through katchin armor...”   
It was a long debriefing, considering the scope of their nearly two year entanglement with these things. Discovering the nature of their scouts, then trying to locate them, the trip there since they couldn't be I.T.'d to, organizing the other planets that wanted to help, most of which feared for their lives that this would be their only chance to stop the invaders, had all taken large amounts of time. Frankly, Mirai was surprised Goku and Vegeta hadn't killed each other yet, stuck with each other for so long. Mirai heard something about a Kai or two being in on it, the resistance, and he absently wondered why those guys couldn't ever seem to see these things before they became a problem.  
“So it all comes down to timing. If we can get a good, piercing shot to the heart of the complex, it'll shut down power to the whole apparatus” Vegeta finished delivering the information with as much of a scowl as when he started. Apparently, one of the properties of katchin that made it the hardest metal in the universe, was that it actually absorbed energy on a low level over time. So any machine made out of it was at an automatic disadvantage, power wise. It was probably the only thing that had stopped them from completely taking over the universe at this point.   
Mirai sighed when the 'presentation' was done.  
“So, you need us to take care of the physical cyborg defenses, while Goku crashes the sensor array with his instant transmission, so you can strike the blow?” he cut to the heart of what he assumed his father's plan would be.  
“Exactly” Vegeta glanced at Mirai out of the corner of his eye with approval, “Kakarot couldn't stay in place long enough to take care of the pests without the automated laser cannons striking him.”  
“Sorry Vegeta” Goku apologized, rubbing the back of his head. “Those things really hurt! Watch out you guys, we don't have any more senzu beans left” he warned them. Gohan rubbed his temples, and he could feel Mirai patting him on the shoulder. Leave it to his dad to not go for help until all the senzu were gone.   
There was a saying Mirai had heard once, something about the best laid plans... And this plan was not even laid with particular care, just sort of decided on by default because no one was going to argue with Vegeta, and he wanted this over with already. So when things took an unexpected turn in the battle, he was hardly surprised.  
Being military men themselves, and pretty fascinated by the whole thing, Roane and Taka had elected to stay, watching from the base while the four of them headed out. Mirai couldn't help but hear one of Roane's first lessons to them, about sticking together, ringing in his head as they fought, mostly because he knew there was little chance of them all doing that here. He wasn't afraid though. The metallic crunch that accompanied the chest of each cyborg being blown through by his ki blasts was strangely satisfying to him. Well, maybe not so strangely.  
Goku was keeping the mass of lasers firing off into the empty space where he used to be every couple nanoseconds, and the rest of them were plowing through the surprisingly nimble ranks of the aggressive machines, when the game changed. The complex they'd been aiming to make their way towards suddenly began folding in on itself, and Mirai knew they were in trouble.   
They kept fighting even as a contraption that would have dwarfed an orbiting satellite, like the moon, rose up out of the center of the planet. Suddenly the lasers stopped firing, and the array pulled in on itself too, obviously about to become part of the new problem. When the lasers stopped, apparently Goku stopped moving too, and when he turned to Vegeta for guidance on what to do now, a large whole suddenly appeared in the side of his chest. Every one of them sprung into action at once, which was to say away from where they had just been, and it was a good thing too, or there would have been no one left fighting at all.  
Now...now Mirai was feeling that first stab of fear. Goku didn't look like he was quite dead, but he was on the ground, and not moving much...he probably would be soon, without any help. None of them could stay in one place long enough to regroup though, or else they'd be missing chunks of their chests too. Who the hell goes into battle without any kind of back up plan? Apparently saiyans, that's who. Mirai could imagine what Gohan was going through right now, unable to help his father who was basically bleeding out while unconscious, but he fought to stay focused.  
The machines certainly knew what they were doing. Goku was basically like bait right now, with any of them flying down to him walking into the trap. As Mirai flew and blasted random cyborgs and implements of the larger mega-cyborg, he kept a close bead on all of their ki's. Goku's to see if he could still cling to life, his own father's to make sure he hadn't been hit or injured, and Gohan's to make sure he wasn't doing anything heroic.   
Suddenly Mirai could hear his father's voice in his head, and while he knew the man wasn't telepathic, he remembered they did have people on their side who were.  
“Listen up brats! We've got to get this thing taken out in the next 30 seconds or so, before Kakarot kicks the bucket, or I'll have that harpy of a wife of his on my ass for the rest of eternity about letting him die” Vegeta shouted at them. He really needn't have, because of the direct connection, but you know, it was the heat of battle, and it was Vegeta, after all.  
“Do you have a new plan? I lost track of where the power center went in the commotion” Mirai confessed.  
“It's just below center, under that large, extra thick plating” they could hear Gohan's voice coming in on the conversation too.   
“Of course it is” Vegeta said sarcastically, though they weren't really sure if he was meaning the tone towards Gohan, or the machines for putting it in such a heavily protected place...it didn't really matter at that point.   
“Clear me a path on 3” Vegeta commanded, and they both immediately changed course to provide the cover he needed.  
“One...”   
Gohan fired a large swath of ki, angled not at the plate but so that it hit an arm and cleared a little over half the field between Vegeta's projected position and the target.  
“Two...”   
Mirai cleared the rest of his path, aiming for one of the support columns as his ruse.   
“Three!”   
Mirai looked over to his father as the shot was about to be fired, and a couple things all happened at once. Something that looked vaguely like a metal spider was about to shoot Vegeta with one of the death dealing lasers made mobile, and the machine's calculations must have caught up to what they were trying to accomplish, because every cyborg left on the field was suddenly rushing to get in between them and their target. Being all connected in their minds still, Mirai could feel his father's frustration, knowing he'd not get the ki blast off in time, but he was still of course going to try.   
He was going to die.  
There was a time when one of Mirai's chief goals in life was to save this man, but now...he turned and levied his own blast at the contraption while he still had a chance at the shot. Just before he heard the gut wrenching sear of the laser melting through his father's body, he got a flash in his mind that wasn't brought up by his own brain. //Blue hair...a little girls' pink hair in pony tails...twin sons who could never do anything right...// Then blackness. Tears slid down Mirai's face and he put even more power into his shot as white hot ki laced with the pride of an entire race, and the acceptance of one man, poured through him.   
Even Gohan seemed taken aback by the size of the hole left clean through the metal.   
From Mirai's point of view, he could see daylight through the other side, but his vision quickly narrowed to the body falling out of the sky next to him. Grabbing what was left of his father, he saw Gohan heading for Goku as well. A grinding sound that was loud enough to start shattering glass with the magnitude of it's volume, was emanating from the machine. The smaller cyborgs all froze in the air, their controlling connection having been severed. The sounds of it all falling chased them as they fled the explosions that ripped through the air.   
Goku was still clinging to life in Gohan's arms, but it had been instant death for Vegeta. Not that he couldn't be brought back eventually...but having seen what he saw right before had left Mirai just as emotional as if Vegeta hadn't been going to come back. Not that he could ever say anything. In fact, if he wanted to keep living himself once Vegeta was back, he'd better not ever say anything. But the damage had already been done, as they say, to Vegeta and Mirai's relationship.

A ride with the Supreme Kai later, and they were all back at the planet where they'd left Roane and Taka. Goku was able to be healed by the purple Kai, though he still felt drained afterward. It was decided they'd rest here, and then head over to Namek in the morning, so they could bring back Vegeta. It was actually decided by Gohan, but Goku seemed fine to go along with it.  
Gohan kept a close watch on Mirai while they cleaned up and showered. Since he had seen the same thing as Mirai when Vegeta died, he knew it wasn't unpleasant emotions he was dealing with, but he wanted to stay close all the same. He kept his hand on the small of Mirai's back through most of their shower, but there was nothing sexual about it though, for probably the first time ever. It wasn't until after they were out that they kissed for a while, and then they decided to go check on Roane and Taka, since they probably shouldn't be left alone for too long on an unknown planet.   
As they went to go look for them, Gohan could feel Mirai's mood shift.  
“Are you ok?” he asked, seeing the nervousness settle over him.  
“It's just... We left our fathers to die right in front of them, I mean, they were watching the battle... What if they've got the wrong idea?” Mirai said, concern twisting his features.  
“Then we'll explain what happened, and how our fathers are, all that...but really, I don't think you need to worry babe. We hired Roane because he's the real deal, remember? He's seen war, even if on a smaller scale. I think it'll be alright” Gohan assured him.  
Mirai needn't have worried.  
While the entire experience was a bit overwhelming to the two Earthlings, the first thing Roane did when they found them was praise Mirai's performance. Apparently the Supreme Kai had already introduced himself to them earlier, and so they knew Vegeta was going to be coming back, as fantastical as it sounded. From there on out, his and Taka's main questions all had to do with how often this kind of stuff actually happens.   
“Unfortunately, with surprising regularity” Gohan sighed.  
“Is this the kind of stuff you meant when you said you fought in wars as a kid?” Taka asked, because to the best of his knowledge, there were no major wars being fought around 50 years ago on Earth.  
“Yeah, pretty much” Mirai smiled. Someday they might enlighten their friends as to the realities of the space time continuum and all that, but for now, they were already trying to process enough as it was.

The Namekians were as friendly and willing to help their old friends out as ever, and Vegeta was back amongst the living in no time that next day. After saying their thanks and farewells there, Goku took them all back to the exact spot he'd taken the boys from when he 'borrowed' them initially. Even though Vegeta made a “tch” noise at the delay, he seemed approving of the state he found the base in.  
“Well, at least we can see you boys were finally taking your training seriously” he commented. Then apparently he decided he'd rather just fly home than have to let Goku touch his shoulder again, because he took off into the skies muttering for “Kakarot” to just leave him the fuck alone already.   
Mirai didn't bother to call out a 'bye'.  
Since they didn't have anything readily available to eat, Goku I.T.'d away a few moments later, waving happily.  
With both of them gone, the four men dressed in camouflage were left standing around looking at each other, and then back to the wreckage.  
Gohan sighed, thinking of all the work they would have to do to clean this up, “Leave it to Vegeta to think the path of a tornado was 'proper training'...” 

Eventually, after a few weeks or so, they managed to clear away all the debris. Since it would be quite a while before the new gravity chamber was built and ready anyway, they did it all by hand, to sort of make up for their lightened load. Gohan wasn't sure if it was because of the tornado, or the talk, or having to spend the night as the only humans on a strange alien space station on the other side of the universe, but Roane and Taka were getting along much, much better now. They even got caught making out one time when they were supposed to be on duty.  
“Does this mean we get a free pass on a make out session too?” Gohan asked wryly, noticing the silence was due to their instructors going at it. Roane, actually, neither of them looked embarrassed, and Gohan was just smiled at.  
“No” Roane said curtly, “Get back to digging.”

Then after another month or so had passed, it was suddenly time for Gohan and Mirai to have “the talk”... Neither could believe it had snuck up on them like this, that they were getting so close to the end of their contracted term with Roane, and now Taka. The two of them had agreed in the beginning to discuss whether or not they would want to do this again before the end of the two years was up. With only a couple weeks left until that date, the two of them spent most of their next free day talking about it.   
Staying mostly lounging on each other's beds, and only leaving to put through laundry and eat, they hashed out a plan. Even though there had been that moment where Mirai thought it was looking like ending their little experiment might be a good idea, he really was excited by the prospect of signing up for another term. Under the right conditions though.  
There were definitely a few things that he would want to augment. Or rather, there were gray areas where they'd felt compelled to give Roane the benefit of the doubt, but that Mirai would like clarified for the future. Like longer times to shower. That was high on his list. Gohan's probably single biggest wish was for a greater variety of spices in the food. It was all cooked by robots ahead of time anyway, and he knew for a fact that they had different settings. They'd been doing all the cooking at the Briefs' residence since before Gohan could remember, probably since before Bulma could either. Despite her love of sweets, Mrs. Briefs, her mother, had never learned how to use an oven.   
“What about the waking us up in the middle of the night thing?” Gohan suggested, nuzzling Mirai's neck.  
“Well, I'm pretty sure that serves an actual 'conditioning' type purpose...”   
“Yeah, I know... I guess we can live with it...”  
They were also hesitant to ask for any more time off on a weekly basis, since going too far in that direction would be counter productive. They did decide to make the little vacation they'd taken a new, officially scheduled event though, with a budget and everything. They were pretty sure Roane and Taka would agree to that. It turned out the list of things they truly wanted was pretty small.  
Mirai wasn't going to be naïve about this though, this, was kind of his specialty. Negotiating.  
Since it only took them the one day to determine that they both wanted this, and what exactly they wanted to change, they went to Roane and Taka on the next weekend. So they would still have another week of being under their thumbs after this, no matter what. Even though their sergeants were obviously doing much better in their personal lives, that didn't necessarily mean they would want to do this again, tie down that large of a chunk of their futures. They might want to go off and live a more normal life together now, who knew... Gohan and Mirai wouldn't know unless they asked.  
When they walked up to the door of Roane's room, they took a deep breath, and then Mirai knocked on it firmly. They hadn't really thought to think they might be 'interrupting' something until they heard a crash and a loud curse from the other side... Well, it wasn't like they could call ahead, they didn't have cell phones and the ones on base to call from building to building had never been turned on. A few seconds later, Taka opened the door, and they were both happy to see he was fully clothed.  
“Hey, what's up?” he asked casually, inviting them in. Behind him, Roane was still pulling on a shirt though, and by the smell of it, things had indeed been 'going on' before this...  
“Uh, well, we didn't mean to interrupt, but we kind of needed to talk to you guys today” Mirai said, not making a move forward. He'd much rather have this conversation in a room that didn't seek of sex, if it could be worked out.   
“Nah, it's ok, we were already done. Roane's just getting old, so it takes him a little longer to get dressed” Taka said with a grin.  
“Hey, fuck you Sasaki” Roane fired back at him, copying his habit of calling people by their last names when he was pissed, though in this instance it was more like aggressive teasing... Gohan doubted there were very many people whose love language was 'words of affirmation' in the military.  
“I don't think we really needed to know all that” Mirai fake-sighed as if they were put out by this, though he was just playing himself. Roane laughed.  
“I think you probably already did” he chuckled, giving Gohan a wink. He had to join him in a grin for the little inside joke there, but Gohan did try and bring things back around to their actual topic too.  
“Maybe you guys could meet us over in the mess hall in about 20 minutes?” Gohan suggested. Roane nodded, but Taka spoke up.  
“If you want us to shower first, better make it 30 minutes” he added.  
“Fine, 30 minutes it is then” Mirai laughed and took the doorknob on their side, pulling it closed. He was glad for the getting along and the lightheartedness, but this was going to be a serious business conversation after all, one should be showered for it.

After the door shut, Taka grinned and started stripping down to his boxers again, to make the showering faster of course. Roane stood there for a moment, with a thoughtful look on his face.  
“He wants something” he said almost to himself. Taka looked over at him, stopping what he was doing.  
“...What do you think he wants?” he asked, not refuting the claim at all.  
“Oh, It could be any number of things...but with the timing, I'd say it has to do with our futures here” Roane guessed, finally sort of snapping out of it and beginning to get ready to shower as well.  
“How can you tell?” Taka asked him, since he was normally pretty good at reading people himself.  
“I guess the way they were knocking at my door, it kind of reminded me of the first time I met them. Then with Gohan standing just a little ways behind him like that, the posture... That was Mirai in “Mr. President” mode, I'd bet you anything” Roane broke it down for him.  
“Hm, I guess we're having this conversation sooner rather than later after all... Good thing we already know what we want, huh?” Taka said sweetly, giving Roane a kiss before they headed out to the showers.   
“Yeah, good thing” he grinned back, taking Taka's hand while they walked.

Mirai and Gohan were already waiting when their sergeants got there. Taking the initiative, since it was their last weekend after all, Gohan had set the robots to make them some pies and cakes while they waited. No harm in that. It wasn't like these things should be discussed on empty stomachs anyway. The desserts weren't actually done when their instructors got there, but the smell was already beginning to waft through the dining area.  
Roane raised an eyebrow, but Gohan just crossed his arms and dared him to say something. It was their day off after all, and there was technically nothing in the rules about it. Roane shook his head in amusement and didn't end up saying a word.  
“Is this a party? I told you we should have brought wine” Taka elbowed Roane in the side, making Mirai laugh.  
“No, it's not a party, Gohan's just missing my grandmother's cooking right now” he said with a chuckle, making Gohan grin as well.  
“Come have a seat, the robots will automatically serve it up when it's done” he motioned for them to join them at the cafeteria style table. Both Roane and Taka sat down, and Mirai didn't see any point in waiting to address the main issue.  
“I'll cut to the chase here guys, Gohan and I would like to ask you to stay on for another term. What would you say to the 'general' idea of that?” he added, indicating that exact terms and conditions were all on the table. Roane put his arm around Taka, taking a rather laid back pose.  
“We'd like that” he said confidently, and both Gohan and Mirai smiled, feeling a sense of relief wash over them, “But, there'd have to be a couple of changes” Roane followed up with, making Gohan raise an eyebrow.  
“You want changes?” he asked incredulously, not realizing how it sounded until it was out of his mouth. Both Roane and Taka got a good laugh from that, and Gohan had to roll his eyes and admit that it had been kind of funny.  
“Alright, alright, what are your grievances, boys?” Roane said, willing to get down to business.  
“Well, for starters, we'd like assurances that our day off will be a full 24 hrs, midnight to midnight each time, none of that being kept up until dawn the night before business” Mirai opened with.  
“Hm, starting with the big guns, eh?” Roane leaned forward a little, and moved to rest his elbows on the table. “I'm not sure I can agree to that, it's bad enough you actually get 'a day off' to begin with” he said, pointing out that in the military, Saturday's didn't mean shit. That was not the direction Mirai and Gohan were hoping to go with this.   
“What are some of the things you guys want?” Mirai asked, carefully letting the previous issue go unresolved for now.  
“Well, for our own piece of mind, we'd like for you to put one of us officially 'in charge' of the base” Taka said, surprising both of them, “Preferably me” he added with a wink.   
“Him, first” Roane clarified, pushing his shoulder a little. “If it's going to be a full two year term again, we were thinking it could alternate, by quarters or halves of a year or something. That way we'd each feel like we got our time in the sun” he explained. That was not something Gohan or Mirai had been expecting. It made sense though, and it made sense for their instructors looking at this as a couple. It made Gohan happy to see them thinking that way, and Mirai had a gleam in his eye too.   
“I think, that if you're going to be so assured of your positions of authority, we should be assured of better tasting food, with regularity” Mirai offered to trade across the board.  
“I don't know, diet is extremely important for staying in top shape” Roane actually seemed to be seriously objecting to that.  
“Oh my god, the food here sucks” Taka said with feeling. Roane seemed a bit shocked. Gohan just grinned and nodded.   
“I wasn't going to gripe too much, because you all seemed to be so into it, but wow, even a little salt now and then, it wouldn't kill us” Taka was totally jumping ship and siding with their privates. Roane wasn't going to admit he didn't normally eat quite this blandly on his own either though, and that 'plain' was just the only setting he felt ok with on the weird robot things that did the cooking...   
“Well, if I was willing to budge on that, we'd still have a problem, because 'Southern Homestyle” and “Old World Italian” aren't happening, we'd have clogged arteries in a week” Roane exaggerated, just a little.  
“I could reprogram a new setting, if that would help” Mirai offered, “that way we could set our own menu of healthy foods, but with a touch more salt, and spice, maybe even a dessert or two, on the weekends...” With the smell of chocolate cake and three different kinds of pie filling the air around them, Roane was bound to crack eventually. Mirai simply waited in silence, the others taking his cue, until finally Roane threw up his hands.  
“Fine, fine, we can reprogram the robots for better food if we get our 'in charge' breakdown” he gave in, causing mild cheering to erupt around him. He tried to look more disgruntled about it than he was, for appearances' sake.   
“Any other requests?” he sighed, but before they could get any further, plates of sugary confections began arriving in front of them.   
“This was an amazing idea” Mirai sighed, taking a plate of each as they started piling up and squeezing Gohan's knee under the edge of the table.  
“Thanks” Gohan grinned, and even Roane didn't look too upset over the large slice of cherry pie sitting in front of him. They took a few minutes to enjoy their snacks while they were hot, before requests started flying back and forth again.  
“Higher thread count sheets” Mirai asked.  
“Do our laundry for us” countered Roane.  
“Fuck no” Gohan shot that deal down right away.  
“Longer showers”  
“Buy us a tank”  
“What the fuck are you going to do with a tank?” Mirai sputtered.  
“What couldn't we do with a tank, is a better question” Taka interjected. Mirai just looked at them with his mouth hanging open for a moment, because holy crap, they were actually serious.  
“We can live with that” Gohan spoke up, making Mirai look at him in shock.   
“You realize they're going to be shooting at us with that thing, right?” he asked.  
“Yeah, but five extra minutes in the shower, every day, I think it's worth it” Gohan said with a tilt of his head, like the logic was undeniable. Besides, this was Mirai's one thing he really wanted, and Gohan wanted to make sure that he got it.  
“Whoa, whoa, I never agreed to doubling your time for it” Roane said, and Mirai couldn't tell if he was kidding or not for a moment. Then Gohan spoke up again, and Roane and Mirai found that they had officially lost control of the situation.  
“Make it 15 minutes, and I'll buy you two tanks” he said, pointing his finger at Taka, who was the one obviously more vested in this interest from his excited posture.  
The blonde reached over and practically snatched Gohan's hand out of the air to shake it, saying “Deal” with a triumphant gleam in his eyes. After Mirai picked his jaw up off the table, he began to finish off the rest of his pie with a shake of his head. Gohan's method may have been a bit unorthodox, but he had just gotten them 15 glorious minutes under the hot water, and Mirai was actually quite happy, even if they were going to have to spruce up the artillery range now.   
Roane was just chuckling at how pleased with himself Taka looked in that moment, not actually caring much for the extra shower time being given out. He and Taka didn't subject themselves to that particular rule, but he remembered it well from being in the service, and it sucked. Plus it had no real bearing on their fighting ability or endurance or anything, so he was ok with letting it slide.  
“I'd be willing to consider your 24 hr day off request, if we make getting a break of at least two weeks mandatory in between the middle of the two years” Roane decided to be the first to offer the next one. Mirai smiled at the request, but he wasn't going to be greedy.  
“Actually, we were going to mandate a break like that our selves, without it being part of the bargaining. I guess we were a little over zealous in the beginning, to think that we wouldn't need something like that in the first go around” Mirai informed him. Roane wasn't necessarily surprised to hear such honesty from Mirai, but it was a refreshing reminder of why these two guys had become his friends over the years, and not just remained as more formal 'business' acquaintances.  
After that, none of them had anymore bargaining or requests, so they finished their desserts just talking and having a good time, with Mirai promising as they left to have his people draw up the new contracts right away. 

Taka was ending up spending the night in Roane's room again afterward, as he often did, and as he lay there with his head on Roane's chest, he began to chuckle.  
“What?” Roane asked sleepily, running his fingers through Taka's hair.  
“I think we got played” he said, still chuckling. That woke Roane up a bit.  
“What do you mean?” he frowned.  
“I don't think they really wanted half that shit they asked for” Taka summarized for him.  
Roane sighed, because there was nothing they could do about it now, but he realized Taka was probably right.  
“Well, we can always take it out of their hides in other ways when the next term starts” he mused, “We will have tanks now...” causing Taka to laugh out right.  
“I love you” the blonde murmured after settling down, letting his eyes finally fall closed.  
“I love you too” Roane whispered back, trajectory calculations falling out of his head as he let himself slip down into sleep as well.

Epilogue (mini)

Gohan spooned behind Mirai that night, even though they expected their 'last week' to be especially tough starting tomorrow, he just couldn't not hold his lavender haired love tonight.   
“Thank you for getting me the better food” he whispered, knowing Mirai was still awake.  
“You're welcome. I'll thank you for the shower time too, though, I don't think we'll know until we actually get there if it was a good deal or not” Mirai teased him. Tanks. Of all the things...  
“Mirai?...” Gohan said his name as a question after their chuckling had died down, “I have a confession to make” he said softly. His eyes opened upon hearing that, but Mirai didn't make any move to turn or leave Gohan's embrace.  
“A confession? Ok, go ahead...” Mirai prompted him, wondering what on Earth it could be about.  
“Well, it may sound kind of odd, but, when you had to watch over me for those demerits that one time” Gohan's voice got a little huskier as he breathed a hot breath down the back of Mirai's neck, “I kind of liked it...”

THE END


End file.
